Goodbye, My love
by Teenslayer
Summary: He left her on a cold rainy day in Tokyo. 5 years later, she sees him on the crowded streets of New York City. What will happen? Will old feelings still be present? Will there be others in their lives? Will love prevail all? CHAP 21 UP!
1. Goodbye?

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A/N: This is my first fic in Sailormoon, so be kind!!! Enjoy!! 

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Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 1 (Darien's Point Of View) 

""You are a total jerk!" The words echoed in my head. They were painful, especially from my love, but I agreed to them. I was a jerk. The biggest jerk ever born, perhaps. How could I have done something like this to an innocent, beautiful girl? She was my love. She was the only reason I still wanted to be in this twisted world. Now I lost her. 'She helped me when I was beyond depressed. And this is how you repay her!?' I mentally yelled at myself. She must hate me now!!! I did all that….for what?!!…just because of some stupid dream that I don't even know if I should believe… What is wrong with me? How could I have just given her up like that?!!! 

I brought up a hand and grabbed a fistful of hair in frustration. Then I sighed. 'No use thinking about it now…it's over…she won't take you back again…just let her go Darien…' Leaning on the side of the car I was in, I thought back to yesterday, the day in which I officially broke up with her…

---------------------------------------**Flashback**---------------------------------------

"Serena, why are you here? I told you, there is no more of us! There is just you and me. We're not a couple anymore! Don't you understand?" 

"Darien…But why? What did I do wrong? Please tell me…. I'll fix it. I'll do anything for you. You know that. Just tell me what I'm doing wrong," she voiced silently. 

We were on the sidewalk. Our voices echoing into the streets. But no one was there to witness the scene. I felt like hugging her. To have her in my arms. But, I held myself back and put on a stern, cold look, hoping she would just leave, before I could hurt her more than she already was. I don't know if it was possible to hurt her anymore…. But, I didn't want to see her cry or look crushed. She was just making things harder. After a long, awkward silence, I found the courage to speak. 

"Serena, just leave, please. There is no more us. Just forget about it! I don't love you! I don't even like you! I don't want to see you again!!!" 

My voice raised with each word, and with my desperation. There, I had said it. With that done, I turned. But I still saw the shock and heartbreak etched on her pretty face. It made me walk even faster. Then, she called out to me. 

That was when she said it. Loud and clear. "You are a total jerk!!" 

The words stabbed me hard in my already broken heart. I ran. My last glance at her, she was on the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks. I turned away, unable to look at her. In the safety of my apartment, the doors closed, I collapsed. Unable to control my sorrow any longer, I cried, a thing a man should not have done. But I couldn't help it. I had lost her. 

---------------------------------------**End Flashback**---------------------------------------

I can still see the hurt in her eyes. God, I wish I could make it all go away, but there is no way in doing so. I have to leave. She needs to go on. I don't deserve her, and she deserves someone much better than me… I love you, Serena… Always will…Please forgive me someday… And I left…

Please R&R and maybe I'll continue!!

** -Teenslayer**


	2. Who's the blonde beauty?

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A/N: Hey, I am sooooo very sorry for the long wait. I was really busy with homework and Saturday school too!!! So have some sympathy!!! Anyway, here's the next part!!! Enjoy!!! ^_^ 

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Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 2 

Darien was walking along the crowded streets of Manhattan, and muttering to himself, when something caught his eye. The thing he saw made an all too familiar shiver go down his spine. 

IT was beautiful. After 5 years, he was surprised he hadn't forgotten IT. IT was Serena, looking more pretty than she had ever looked. 'But wait a sec., could it really be her? Or… am I imagining things….' 

Ever since that fateful day, when Darien left Japan, he had become successful. Coming to America, he had become a doctor and from there he had rised, slowly, higher and higher in rank, and finally to one of the most famous doctors in all of New York State. Darien Shields had money, power, reputation, good looks, almost everything. The only thing he didn't have was love. 

Ever since he left Serena, he had never dated anyone. Girls will flock towards him in mobs just to ask him to go out with them, but he always refused. He just couldn't. He knew he would probably never see Serena again, and at some point he would have to make a family, but he couldn't make himself date anyone. 

For some weird reason it seemed wrong, as if he was cheating Serena. It was as if some powerful, magical force was stopping him from loving anyone else. Everyday, his heart ached terribly for her. Over the years, it had become less painful, but it was still there, somewhere inside of him. How he missed her… Darien was snapped out of his daydream suddenly, when a woman came up to him and asked him something. 

She had blonde hair up in a ponytail and ocean-blue eyes. Darien recognized her as the Serena-look alike he saw a moment ago. Darien's heart started beating faster, and he wondered if the girl could hear it.

Now, the mouth of the blonde beauty was moving. "Excuse me, do you know where the library is? I'm new here." The women asked. 

It took a while for Darien to register the question, but finally he replied, "um.. yeah, it's 3 blocks down, turn right, another 2 blocks, make a left turn and you're there." 

The blonde beauty responded with a blank look. 

"You want me to come with you? I'll show you the way.." Darien said. 

"Oh… that'd be great! Thank you and by the way, my name is Serena Tsukino." 

She turned and started to walk, but then she noticed that she was the only one walking and that the handsome young man she felt attracted to wasn't following. She turned around and found a shocked Darien staring at her. 

"What's wrong?" Serena asked. 

"Ddddii….did you say your name is Serena?" Darien stuttered, looking down. 

"Yeah I did. Oh, anyway, what's your name?" 

"It's dddaarr….Darien….Darien Shields." 

TBC… Well, that's all!!! What's Serena's reaction? I'm evil I know!!! Wait for the next chapter… R&R … Pwetty pwease!!!!! 

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-Teenslayer 


	3. Encountering and escaping

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A/N: Hey!!! How is everyone? I hope you all like my story so far! And I promise it will end as Serena/Darien. Anyway, I hate the disclaimer stuff. What's the point of it? Okay, I'll stop talking now….. Here's chapter 3, Enjoy!!!! 

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Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 3 

There was silence that seemed to last for eternity. After a long while, Darien looked up, only to find Serena's face a reflection of his own. 

"Serena, I've missed you….." Darien started, his voice full of passion and sorrow. 

Serena stood staring back at him with the same shocked expression. Darien started moving towards her, slowly, longing to hold her. Suddenly, Serena got a look of mixed horror and anger on her face. She dodged Darien's outstretched arms and took off, running towards the streets. 

A look of rejection and hurt crossed Darien's face, but within a second, he was running after her. As they ran down the crowded streets, people yelled and steered away from them. Others just stared. Darien heard several angry shouts and he realized he was hurting people by pushing them out of his way as he pursued his love. But, even so, he didn't care. He was focused completely and only on Serena, running a distance away from him. 

Then, Darien saw her slow down. But at the same time, he also so a taxi slow down and he confirmed that Serena was flagging it down. Darien shouted for her to stop, but even as he said it, Serena slammed the door shut and the Taxi drove off. Scared out of his mind that he would lose her, Darien flagged down a cab too. He got into the passenger side of the car. Without a second to spare he yelled the only thing that came to his mind. 

"Follow that Taxi! Fast!" he shouted. 

The driver, known as Mike, immediately started after the car. After a while, the other car zoomed past a yellow light. Just as Darien's Taxi got there, I know, poor vocabulary. Couldn't think of any other way to determine the 2 Taxis, lol. it turned red. Mike pulled to a stop. Darien looked anxiously at the other cab, which continued one block down and then turned the next corner. 

"Don't stop now! Follow them!" 

Mike looked at his customer, realizing that Darien hadn't said a sentence without shouting at him. He wondered what was bothering the young man so much. With a sigh, he replied, "I'm sorry sir, it's red light." 

Darien felt all the life sucked out of him. He felt devastated and defeated. Out of pure anger he made a fist of his right hand and slammed it into the door, cursing silently under his breath. Then, he opened the door, and slid out. 

Just as he was about to leave, the driver called out that he didn't pay yet. Darien fumbled about in his coat pocket for his wallet. Bringing it out, he took a 100-dollar bill out and threw it at Mike. 

"Your change sir!" 

"Keep it!" Darien yelled, already a distance away from the car. With a shake his head, the driver drove off. Head bowed and hands in his pockets, Darien slowly walked to a fairly good restaurant right across the street and went in. 

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Around the corner, hidden in the shadows, Serena watched Darien in the already darkening night.

"I'm sorry, my love. But how can I trust you after all you've done to me?" 

A stray tear slipped out of her magnificent eyes. "Don't worry, Darien… I'll come back to you someday. When the time is right…. That's a promise…." With that said, she walked a way into the darkness. 

T.B.C What do you think? Was it good? Please R&R! I want at least 18 reviews!!!

** -Teenslayer **


	4. Once again

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A/N: Hey!!! I'm back… with a whole new chapter too! LOL…. For some reason that I don't know, my format for my stories always gets messed up online, so don't blame me!!!! Anyway, thx SO VERY MUCH for the reviews and enjoy the chapter. ^__^ Oh ya, just to answer your question, "Serena is TOOO NICE TOO THINK ABOUT REVENGE!!! ESPECIALLY IF IT HAD TO DO WITH DARIEN!!" So does that answer your question? Anyway, I'll keep that in mind tho… o.0 Anyway, keep reading! 

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Key

'…..' thoughts 

****** change of place/time 

"….." talking … my thoughts 

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Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 4 

3 days later, Darien sat in his office, staring at the door, but at the same time, not really staring at it, but daydreaming. He was waiting for his client to come in. So far, the client, Mr. Grant, was late. Though, Darien was actually grateful for his lateness. It gave him time to think. 

After Darien's encounter with Serena, his days were pretty busy. In the 3 days after it, he had conducted and led 6 surgeries and examined many other cases of disease and injuries. He practically had no spare time in which to find Serena, or even think about his unexpected meeting with his love of life. 

Now, replaying the events in his head, he realized that meeting Serena had completed him, in soul and mind, but that completeness had faded away slowly when Serena started to run away from him. When he lost her that night, every part of him felt like they were sucked dry and beaten up into pulp, leaving an empty shell of himself. And, even more, he had suffered from endless arguments with himself, usually about how he shouldn't have left so many years ago. 

His heart had been broken, yet again, and Darien marveled at how it was still beating and that his blood still flowed. He realized that he could no longer bear it to stay away from Serena. He now realized that his days were empty without her. He even wondered how he could've of stopped thinking about her.'How had I lived through those 5 years without her? How? Now that I think about it, it seems almost impossible' Darien knew now that he regretted it, leaving her, not going back, hurting her so much, everything he had done. With that in mind, he vowed that he would find her and talk to her…Finally, after all these years, he let his barrier drop and admitted to himself that he really did need her.

Once his busy days were over, he would start his search… for her… He couldn't hide the fact that he was still so much in love with Serena…. Suddenly, a voice broke into his thoughts and he could feel a presence in his office that he hadn't felt a minute ago. He looked up and saw a nurse, looking curiously at him, waiting for a response. Darien groaned when he realized that he hadn't even heard what she had said. He was so deep in his thoughts. 

"Could you repeat that, please? 

" Mr. Grant is here to see you" the nurse said, still looking curiously at him

Pushing his thoughts to the back of his head, he nodded and said, "Send him in," Darien said. He would think about Serena later. For now, he had to do his job. 

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Serena was sitting at a table in a corner of the café across the street from Darien's office building. She was hoping to catch a glimpse of Darien when he came out. But so far, she hadn't seen him. Serena lifted up her shirtsleeve a little, and checked her wristwatch. It read 7:00 (P.M). Letting her hand drop back onto the table, she wondered why he wasn't out yet. For the past 3 days, Serena had been monitoring his every action, every move. 

She watched from places she knew he never would go. For example, alleyways, dark street corners, etc. But today, she wanted to get a clear view of him and so she decided to stay at the café right across the street. 'Darien would never look this way, and besides he'll never come here after work, right…' Serena was at least 90% sure. Unconsciously, she lifted her drink to her lips and took a sip.

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Darien was hungry and exhausted. After a day of patients, he was ready to eat a quick meal and catch some sleep. It was now 9:00 and he finally came out of his office, tired eyes looking down at the floor in front of him. Walking along the empty hallway, he decided to go out the side door and go to the café across the street. 

He never went there before in all his yeas working here. 'Funny… how could I have never went there before?' he thought as he crossed the street and walked towards the café. Slowly, he opened the door and was spotted immediately by a waiter. The waiter showed him to a table and he sat down. Then, he ordered a drink and 'some weird-looking food' he never thought of trying before. 

The food arrived, and he started digging into it right away. After a few bites, he decided it was actually pretty good, worth eating next time he came here. As he munched on his last few pieces, he looked around for a waiter to receive his check. That was when a glimpse of blonde hair caught his attention, though the person wasn't facing him. Darien was nervous. He tried looking around at her willing her to turn her head a little. 'Can it be her, again? Am I that lucky?' Slowly, he inched towards the blond-haired woman. 

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Another hour had past and there was still no sign of Darien. Serena was getting worried. She had long since finished her drink and was now just fidgeting with her hands, still staring out the window. With a frustrated sigh, she decided to go check if he was still in his office. Slowly, she started to get up…

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Darien noticed the blonde start to get up. He held his breath as the woman turned around and saw… 

T.B.C Yes, I know, it's pretty obvious who it is, but for those who are dumb, sorry to say, enough not to know…. Well, w/e!!! R&R!!! I have to know if it is good!!! So please, I mean please, REVIEW!!! Give me 30 reviews and I'll give you another CHAPTER!!!

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-Teenslayer


	5. Still love me?

A/N: Hey, thanx so much for the reviews! During the time I took to write this chapter, I revised all the previous chapters and I changed some- ok. somewhat a fair amount of- things. Sooo, I just thought I should tell you that maybe you should reread it. Anyway, I think I finally got the format right!! Yay! So, here's chapter 5!!!  
  
Key  
  
'..' thoughts  
  
****** change of place/time  
  
"." talking  
  
Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 5  
  
From last chapter...  
  
Darien noticed the blonde start to get up. He held his breath as the woman turned around and saw. SERENA, just as she looked 3 days ago. Slowly, Serena's gaze found his and she gasped, her eyes widening. 'How can he be here? Impossible!! I thought I made sure he wouldn't come'  
  
When the shock wore off, she turned to leave, but this time Darien grabbed her arms roughly and refused to let her go. He heard a pained gasp from her and realized he was hurting her. Cautiously, he softened his grip on her. Then, in one move, Darien tilted Serena's face upward to his, forcing her to look at him, and asked softly.  
  
"Don't you love me anymore?"  
  
Serena's usually soft eyes became hard as ice.  
  
"No," she replied simply, holding back the unshed tears that threatened to fall at the word.  
  
Knocked off balance by that simple word with the meaning of his entire world, Darien let go her in one fast movement, making Serena fall backwards into a chair that stood there, conveniently.  
  
"You don't love me anymore?" Darien whispered unbelievingly. His face was mixture of disbelief and hurt. Realizing that Darien was waiting for an answer, she replied with her coldest voice ever.  
  
"No, in fact, I have a boy friend. I can even call him right now to come pick me up if you want."  
  
"You know.. for proof." she added calmly. Her face was devoid of all emotions. It was unreadable. Darien was still starting at her, hurt displayed in his eyes when he notice that the look she was giving him was like the one he had given her 5 years ago. With a jolt of recognition, he finally realized that Serena was faking it. That she didn't really have a boy friend and didn't really hate him as she insists...  
  
"Nice seeing you, Darien. I have to go now. Goodbye." Serena said, stiffly. She was already standing up and turning her back to him.  
  
Before he could stop himself, Darien had blurted out, "I don't believe you!" Serena turned around at this statement, glaring at him.  
  
"I don't believe you..." he repeated, though softer now, having caught her attention and prevented her from leaving for the time being.  
  
"You say that you don't love me, but do you really hate me? You know you can't hate me! You know it! You can say no all you want, but did you really stop loving me? Or are you lying? If you have what it takes to walk away, never come back again, and say, loud and clear, that you don't love me anymore, then. then. you can leave!!" Having said that, he took a deep breath and looked at her expectantly.  
  
By now, a crowd had starting forming, in a circle, around them.  
  
Meanwhile, Serena was in her own little world, thinking about all Darien had just said. Those last words had hit Serena hard. 'He's right... I can't NOT love him.. because.. I just can't! He's got me.. Those words. they're so true.. You're so right Darien. I can't hate you, because.. Because, I LOVE YOU!! I can't hate you. no matter what you do to me.. But still, I'm sorry.. For now, this is the way it has to be. For now. I'm sorry..'  
  
After what seemed like eternity, Serena gave him a sad smile and, against all of her will, said, " Sorry Darien, but you're wrong." Then, she walked out, leaving Darien and a crowd of spectators staring openly after her retreating back. 'She still hasn't said it' was Darien's only thought, even as everyone turned to focus their attention on him.  
  
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As soon as Serena got out of there, she started running. At the same time, a battle was raging inside of her.  
  
'Why did you leave like that?'  
  
'What was I supposed to do?'  
  
'You could've not lied!!'  
  
'And the what? What would the result be? Don't you remember how he hurt you last time you gave your soul to him? How is it possible to just run back to him as if nothing had ever happened? As if nothing at all had changed...'  
  
At this, there was no answer, but soon it started up again.  
  
'Well, didn't you come here to find him? If that was the reason you cam all the way here, then why hide?' This brought back memories, visions of times when she sat alone in her room, many times when she had to cry herself to sleep, and even her sleep wasn't welcoming. She dreamt of Darien. The dreams haunted her by nighttime and during the day, her friends and families annoyed her. She had been tired of putting up with all the concerned looks and annoying questions and the nightmares. Day went and night came. It was same everyday and she soon grew to be tired of everything.  
  
But then, one morning, after another dream of Darien, or rather, nightmare, Serena made up her mind. She couldn't, wouldn't put up with this. She felt, with Darien gone, that she was disappearing, little by little. She no longer played at the arcade, but instead had picked up on her studies. She had no appetite most of the time and most of all, had lost her innocent and bright look that always radiated off of her and could light up any room. The usually cheerful girl was gone, replaced by an empty shell of her old self. Serena barely even smiled, much less laugh. Her soft laughter was missed by everyone.  
  
All those changes probably had convinced everyone to let her go when she came up to them one by one to tell them that she was leaving to go to NYC. She had said she was going to find Darien. Finding hope in the situation, and wishing that getting Darien back would cure the broken girl and bring the old, happy and cheerful Serena back, the girls and her family had agreed to it, even as she was buying the ticket that would bring her to America.  
  
A few days later, at the airport, Serena was about to board her plane, when the girls came to say a last goodbye.  
  
"Serena, good luck!" Amy had said with tears in her eyes. In the sea of faces, Serena spotted the hard-headed Mars senshi and had heard Rei tell her to get them him back. Mina and Lita had just whispered a quick we'll miss you and gave her comforting and supportive looks. Then, they had all said goodbye, and Serena had boarded the plane, wishing for a safe and fast trip to NYC...  
  
Back to the present time, Serena continued to battle within her.. 'Ye. Yes. why? Why hide? Why hide when. I came all the way here. just to.. find. him? Why.....' She clutched her head in pain, trying to shake off all these thoughts and memories, trying to forget. As she did so, a quiet sob escaped her throat.  
  
'I'm sorry, Darien. I'm so sorry.' She was crying now. As the air around her cooled, Serena picked up her pace and all the while, tried to stop her tears. After 4 blocks, a car pulled to a stop next to her and a handsome young man stepped out. He greeted her and, seeing her face glistening with tears, had asked her what was wrong with concern visible in his eyes. Serena sighed, told him she would explain later, and glanced back at the café one last time, before getting into the car..  
  
T.B.C..... Yay!! I'm done with this chapter!!! How will Darien get her back? And who is the mysterious guy?!!! Well, you better R&R to find out!!! Anyway, I'm sorry for the short chapters but I think this one is pretty long. I mean longer than any other one I ever wrote!! LOL. Anyway, R&R!!  
  
-Teenslayer 


	6. Dying

A/N: Alrighty!! Thnx for the reviews and I promise to start adding more information and involving the other girls and also. youmas..ok? Anyway, enjoy! ^_^  
  
Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 6  
  
Darien was walking in thick fog that seemed to go on forever. 'Where am I..' He couldn't see anything. Nothing at all, nothing but fog and darkness. Not able to do anything else, he just continued walking straight forward, hoping to catch a glimpse of something solid.  
  
Suddenly, a scream pierced the still air, making Darien jump at least a few feet. Then, acting on instinct, he headed towards the direction he supposed the sound came from. Darien walked on and on, but he didn't see nor hear anything again. Just as he was about to sit down on the only solid thing, the ground, deciding to give up, the same scream sounded. This time, seeming to be closer.  
  
Darien groaned, battling with himself as to whether he should follow the noise. Finally, his curious side won out and he got to his feet, allowing himself to follow the sound again.  
  
After walking in a certain direction for a long time, the fog started clearing up. He could now see trees, benches, bushes, grass and anything a park would have.  
  
'Hey, wait a second. Isn't this the park Serena and I used to go to? But, how am I here?' Darien struggled within himself, trying to figure out what was happening. Then, the scream came again, this time very close and as clear as glass. Darien shivered slightly, pulled his jacket closer around himself, and started walking towards cautiously, towards the now endless- seeming screaming.  
  
As he neared a dead end, he felt it, knew it, that the person or thing screaming was right around the corner. The scream became increasingly louder each step and Darien stopped just next to the corner, afraid at what he might see if he turned the corner.  
  
Suddenly, the scream came again, more shrill and louder than all of the previous ones combined. It was a scream of complete pain. Standing exactly where he was 2 minutes ago, afraid at what he would find if he walked the few steps to the sound, Darien covered his ears as a feeling of dread overcame him.  
  
'The scream, it sounded like..no..it can't be..no..please no..' As his face paled and his eyes widened in fright, he mustered all his courage and steeped into the small clearing. Darien tried to suppress a gasp, but failed to as he saw a youma bending over his love, and her blood....her red blood....a pool of her blood. He almost dobled over at the sight of all the blood and of Serena lying in it, eyes open, dead.. He took one look at his beloved and felt his heart stop beating and his own blood turning cold.  
  
'God.no...no..this.can't be..happening..not possible...no..'  
  
"NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!" he yelled as his knees gave away, and he hit the floor. The youma turned to look at him and he suddenly felt paralyzed with fear.  
  
'This.is.the monster that..that.killed.did this to Serena...no...please no..he looks ready to...attack!! wait..that's a good thing...then..then, I'll be able to die with my love and..we would never be separated again....' The youma jumped and Darien watched with a silly grin on his face as he saw the youma get closer to it's target, him..  
  
NO!!!! What's happening here???? Are they gonna die together???? *Gasp* HAHAHA! R&R to find out!!! I'll try getting the next chapter in as fast as possible, but I'm really busy!!!! I have summer school!!!!!!! Anyway thnx again, for reading!!!  
  
- Teenslayer 


	7. Phone call

A/N: I am sooooo sorry it took so long for me to finish this chapter, but I couldn't use the computer for over 4 weeks meaning I couldn't finish it. But I know, that's no excuse but here's the chapter right? Anyway, I promised to add in stuff about the mysterious guy from before and I will but I can't tell you about his relation to Serena yet since then it will interfere with the story so.. Yeah... Anyway, enjoy!! ^-^  
  
Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 7  
  
Darien snapped open his eyes, gasped and bolted upright in bed, sweat evident on his face and neck. Cold sweat was also sliding down his back. As his room came into clearer focus, all he could do was pant and wait for his heartbeat to slow. He looked around and saw light coming through his window, obviously from some streetlight. Somehow, the little amount of light it offered calmed his nerves a little.  
  
'It was a dream.... A dream.... It was all a dream... it's okay now. Serena's okay.' Having reassured himself, Darien sucked in a deep breath of fresh air and allowed himself to fall back onto his bed, still trying to calm down.  
  
'It was all a dream... It wasn't.... isn't.... real.... There's nothing to worry about.' Slowly, Darien's ragged breathing returned to normal and he got out of be, headed for his kitchen. Slipping on a robe and his slippers, he felt his way along the walls of the room, opened the door, and made his way into the kitchen.  
  
As he neared the refrigerator, he opened it, and took out a bottle of cold, spring water. On the way to a chair, he flipped on the lights and the shadows in the room immediately disappeared, leaving a brightly kit room. Then, he twisted off the cap of the bottle of water and sat down on the chair, gulping down mouthfuls of cool, refreshing water along the way.  
  
He sat there for a long time, just drinking and looking around him. The house he was in was pretty cozy and nice if not gorgeous. The place was decorated in white and blue. Expensive looking furniture was laid out over the place, the floor a rich, creamy vanilla color, giving it a bright appearance in the dim kitchen light. (Srry, but I suck at describing houses!!)  
  
Where he was sitting now was connected by a short hallway to the living room and so, Darien could see that the digital clock placed right over the television read 4:48 A.M. He sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep again.  
  
Still holding his quarter-full bottle of water, he walked towards the couch and slouched onto it. He then placed his water onto the short table in between the couch he was sitting on and the TV, and started surfing channels. He flipped channel after channel without finding anything interesting. Lowering the volume, he finally settled for a movie on HBO. Then, slowly, he placed the remote control onto the table also, and half- watched, half-thought as sleep overtook him once more.  
  
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Serena just finished taking a hot, refreshing shower and was now starting to dress up in a white t-shirts and jeans. When she was done dressing up, she exited the room and turned right, into the kitchen of a medium-sized apartment. A sweet fragrance entered her nostrils and she found herself staring at a table-full of food, and, at the corner of her eyes, a man with brownish hair, black eyes, a built body, and a cute face. He seemed to be a couple of years older than Serena.  
  
'Yum.' she thought as her eyes roamed over the food and brightened with an anticipation she hadn't felt for years. Seeing this, the young man who had picked her up yesterday, broke into a small smile.  
  
"Do you like it?" he asked, his eyes filled with hope. Serena raised her eyes up to look into his dark ones and smiled a real smile, not like the ones she had given him when she had first came. At this, the handsome man's features relaxed and his smile widened.  
  
"Yes, it looks great! And I think it'll taste great too, Max." The guy, now known as Max, suddenly pulled her over to him and sat her down onto a chair in front of all the food. He went to the other die of the table, pulled back the chair and sat on it. Then, the young man turned his gaze back on Serena.  
  
"Well. what are you waiting for? Eat up!!" he said joyously. "And if you like it, I can make it every morning!"  
  
"No! ..I mean, you shouldn't.. you're already busy enough." Serena replied dismissively.  
  
"Oh.. ok.. Well, let's eat!" Max exclaimed. Serena nodded and both of them picked up their eating utensils and started gobbling down their humongooo breakfast.  
  
************************************************  
  
* Ring! Ring! Ring! *  
  
Darien woke up slowly to the sound of a telephone ringing. He groggily opened his eyes and stared at his cell phone, which was right next to him. After the 5th ring, he picked it up and pressed talk.  
  
"Hello?" he mumbled.  
  
"Doctor!! Why aren't you here? It's 10:30!" Hearing that, Darien i9mmediately glanced at the digital clock looming in front of him and suppressed a groan. 'Overslept..'  
  
"I'm sorry. I'll be there in an hour, bye!" Darien hastily clicked the end button on his cell and pocketed it. Then, he jumped off the couch and started his morning routine of showering, dressing, eating, etc.  
  
************************************************  
  
By the time Darien got to his office, it was well over an hour. He had explained sheepishly that there had been a lot of traffic. And it was true too. After a while of glaring at him, the other doctors and staff members gradually accepted his apology and explanation, shooing him off to go meet another patient. And his day of work started all over again. (And, let's just fast forward here!)  
  
************************************************  
  
Serena sat in front of the TV, watching a movie. Max had left to go to work, promising to return early. Serena had told him not to worry about her, even though she knew he would, and focus on his work.  
  
With nothing better to do, she had resolved to settling in front of the TV, watching and, at the same time, thinking about the events of the previous days. So much had happened and to think that it had been less than 2 week since she had come here.  
  
When Serena had first come here, Max had tried his best to make her comfortable and satisfied. He had brought her to go sightseeing and the best restaurants to try to cheer her up. Serena hadn't really wanted to comply, but for his sake, she had agreed. Even though she had gone with him, her mind was elsewhere and Max had slowly realized that. So, after some failed attempts, he had given up and left her alone to her thoughts and Serena was, still is, fine with his decision.  
  
At first she had thought him to be really annoying and even though she knew he was just trying to help, she had hated the way he was treating her. 'Like a helpless baby,' she now thought and laughed.  
  
And then, she had found Darien. That day on the sidewalk, she had seen him, but hadn't been sure of it. At first she had thought it was her mind playing tricks on her, but as the crowd thinned out and she got nearer to the man, she knew he was real. But, yet, she still wasn't sure it had been him, though she had her suspicions and they made her numb with anticipation. It wasn't until Darien had disclosed his name had she really become numb. Completely numb with fear. It was as though she had just frozen and couldn't have moved if a meteor had flew towards her. She couldn't move or speak.  
  
Then, Darien had stepped towards her and out of sheer disbelief and terror, she had taken off, running blindly, not knowing what or why she was doing what she was. Running. The only thought going through her had been RUN!! And she had, but then they had met again. Now, thinking about those encounters, Serena felt confused as to why she had took off then. Was it out of instinct, terror, disbelief or because of his betrayal. Why had she ran away again and again from the man she loved, will love for the rest of eternity.  
  
Serena shook her head, trying to clear her head of Darien, but even as she tried her hardest to pay attention to the movie in front of her, her mind would always wander back to these thoughts.. Again and again.  
  
************************************************  
  
"So, take these pills once a day for a month and you should be fine. Remember to rest and eat healthy," Darien said to the old woman in front of him.  
  
"Thank You, Dr. Shields." The old lady stood up slowly on shaky legs and shook Darien's hand. Then, she walked away, out the door, stopping only at the door to say good-bye. As the door closed, Darien massaged the bridge of his nose and sighed just as the phone rang. He picked it up.  
  
"Dr."  
  
"Yes?" Darien asked into the phone tiredly.  
  
"Um. there's a person on the phone who wants to speak to you. She seemed pretty strange. She said her name is. uh. wait.. It's. Rei Hi------"  
  
"Let me speak to her!" Darien shouted annoyed at the nurse and surprised by the name. 'God, I haven't heard that name for years! But, is it really her and I wonder. why would she be calling for?'  
  
Darien heard a click and then, a timid "Hello?"  
  
".Uh.. hey.. This is Rei right?"  
  
"Yes. are you Darien Shields?  
  
"Uh huh. but how'd you get my number?"  
  
"Darien. we missed you sooo much!! Why'd you leave? I know you still love Serena, but why'd you leave. We'll forgive you if it's a good reason, you know..?" Rei paused for a second. "I'm getting of topic. I just called to say that Tokyo is in great danger. Here, wait. Amy will tell you the details. Oh yeah, about your number, Amy searched it up and said you're a famous doctor now. I'm so happy for you, Darien! Um. wait. here's Amy."  
  
"Hi Darien. How are you?"  
  
"I'm fine, I guess.." Darien replied nervously. He could hardly believe it. He had actually just talked to 2 of the girls after 5 years! There was no sound for a minute and Darien was scared they had dung up or the connection had broke.  
  
But, then, he heard Amy say," Darien, as Rei just told you, there has been trouble here in Tokyo. The other girls and I are trying our best to defeat this new enemy, but it's too strong. And it's still getting stronger, even as we speak. If it isn't stopped soon, then the whole world will be in danger.. We need your help. Yours and Serena's. I know it'll be difficult for you to come back after all this time, but just this once, please come back. We really do need you."  
  
"Alright.. Then, I'll meet you at the airport tomorrow at 3:45 P.M." Darien said as he scanned his computer screen and saw tickets to Tokyo, Japan at 7:00 P.M. He checked his digital clock and saw it was already 4:30, leaving him 2 and ½ hr to go before boarding the plane.  
  
'According to my calculations, everything seems fine. I'll tell the crew that I'll use my 2 weeks of vacation now.. Buy the tickets. board the plane at 7:00 and be off to Tokyo.. Wait. didn't Amy say Serena is needed too? So, does that mean that I'm gonna see her again?!!'  
  
"Hello? Darien, are you still there?" Darien blinked.  
  
Then he said, "Yeah, I'm still here. Hey, how're you gonna get Serena to go back? You know where she lives or something?"  
  
"Huh?! You mean, she's not with you?"  
  
"Uh. no. Should she be with me? I mean .. We met a couple of times, but she ran away every time. I have no clue wher-----" Darien stops as he hears struggling on the other side of the line.  
  
Then, "Darien! She went to America to find you! Why isn't she with you!?"  
  
"And hi to you too, Mina" Darien chuckled.  
  
"Oh. Sorry. I mean. Yeah. Hi, Darien... But, as I was saying, she's supposed to be looking for you."  
  
"You mean. you guys don't know where she is either?"  
  
"I don't think so.." Mina replied.  
  
****************(Tokyo, Japan-Hino Shrine)******************  
  
Rei had just heard the conversation between Mina and Darien. It was pretty weird if you asked her. 'Serena went to America because of Darien and yet Darien says she runs away at the sight of him. strange.'  
  
"Yo, Pyro.. Didn't Serena say something about staying with some person called Max?" Lita called out to her. All four girls along with 2 cats, unnoticed until now, turned to look at her and stimultaneously lit up with bright expressions.  
  
"Yeah.." Mina breathed.  
  
"What? Yeah what?! What do you mean? Do you know where she is now? Tell me!!" The girls stared blankly at the phone still held in Mina's hand and hearing Darien's manic yelling cracked up.  
  
Lita was the first to recover so she took over and said, "We think we remember her saying she was staying with a g-----hmmmm... mmmmm. What are you guys doing?! Let go of me!" Lita yelled as 3 pairs of hands clamped over her mouth and pulled her away from the phone.  
  
"Shhh.." Rei whispered. "Don't you think Darien will go crazy if you said Serena was living with a guy?? Use your brain," she hissed as Lita calmed down. Everyone sighed and let go of her.  
  
"Hey, Lita? You there? Who's she staying with? Tell me!"  
  
"oh.. noone, Darien! She's renting an apartment there. Don't worry about it, we'll find her," Rei said quickly.  
  
"But..."  
  
"Oh! So sorry, Darien, but I have to run. We'll talk when you come back. Bye now!" Rei hung up the phone.  
  
"Phew. that was close," Lita said.  
  
"All thanks to you!" Rei said shooting daggers at her.  
  
"Hey! It was an accident. I didn't mean too," Lita replied defensively, holding her hands up in front of her. Rei continued glaring at her.  
  
"She's right, Rei.. Besides this is hardly the right time to fight. What we have to focus on now is how we're going to contact Serena," Luna rushed in.  
  
"Yeah.." Mina said. Everyone sighed.  
  
************************************************  
  
Darien had just hung up the phone. He knew the girls wouldn't harm him, but he felt uneasy about the whole Serena thing. Didn't Lita say she was staying with someone? Why did Rei say she was renting an apartment? Something's not right about this.. I have a feeling the girls are lying to me... but why?'  
  
A beep sent him crashing back to reality and the click in front of him read 5:00. With another long sigh, he started packing up, preparing to go home and prepare for his trip back to Tokyo.  
  
T.B.C. How was it? Good, bad, ok? I know this chapter didn't have much action, but I think it's necessary. This was basically an explanation chapter or whatever you call it. Anyway, sorry again for the long wait! I know some of you thought the mysterious guy was Seiya but noooo, it was just a guy I made up! so... anyway, please R&R!!  
  
-Teenslayer 


	8. Arriving

A/N: I'm back!!!! Ahhhh!!!!! *dodges a tomato and several other objects* Sorry!!! Gomen!!! I was really, really, really, REALLY busy.... If you didn't know before, I'm in the 8th grade, so you should know that I just took the SSHSAT. If you don't know what it is, I would just say that it is a really hard test that you have to take to get into any one if the specialized high schools of NYC so I was basically studying my butt off for it. But.... I got in!!!! I got into Stuyvesant!!!! You better congratulate me on that ^,^ But, anyways, this is the next chapters. So.... let's begin.  
  
Goodbye, My Love- chapter 8  
  
Rei, Amy, Lita and Mina slouched onto the couch of the living room of the Hino's residence. It had been 3 and ½ hours since they had hung up on Darien. Amy had checked up on all the telephone numbers having the name Max on it, but with little luck. They still hadn't found Serena. They were tired out of their minds as it was now 2:30 a.m. (time difference... and.... I just made that up since I really don't know the difference of the time zones... ehehe....)  
  
Darien would be arriving in another 7 hours and 15 minutes, at 9:45 in the morning. Amy had already managed to check that, making sure that the 3:45 that Darien had said was 9:45 here.  
  
Now, as they stared blankly and desperately tried to keep their eyes open, only one thought was going through their mind. 'Where is SHE?!!!' In the cool, midnight air, with the moonlight streaming in, through the windows, the crickets chirping and the breeze ruffling the trees, and with Rei's grandfather's light snores in the next room, all the girls could do, was sit there and try to relax in the silent night. Even so, as their bodies rested, their minds certainty weren't. Millions of thoughts and questions rushed like traffic in a big city through their heads.  
  
Finally, Rei broke the "pleasant" silence, saying what everyone was thinking, but wasn't saying. "Where can she be?" Everyone else just stared at her, their eyes clouded in the same confusion and desperation as was in her own lavender eyes. Sighing out loud, Rei stood and faced the rest of the girls.  
  
"I'll go make some coffee. I don't think anyone of us can go on without it....," she said, yawning slightly through her small smile. "I'll help." Amy stood and followed her to the kitchen while the remaining two just stared as they left and once again went back into their own world, trying to sort through the many questions flooding their head.  
  
*****************(A while later)************************************  
  
Darien stared out of the window to the side of the airplane. He had been sitting here next to a pretty and attractive-looking girl as seatmate for an hour now. Only a while ago, he had been rushing to the airport of NYC, just in time for his flight. If he had only been one minute later, he would have missed his plane. As it is, he was extremely lucky. Currently, almost everyone in the plane was asleep. Gazing out the window, darkness reflected in his dark midnight orbs. 'I can't believe I'm going to be back in Tokyo in less than 7 hours now. I wonder if anything has changed.... It's been so long....' Letting out a sigh, Darien got up and headed for the lavatory.  
  
****************( Around 3 hours later) *******************************  
  
"Now what? We can't find her or the guy she's living with. Darien's gonna be here in less than 4 hours, expecting us to pick him up at the airport WITH Serena!! I can't believe this!!!" Amy cried. The other 3 girls just stared at her as if she had just grown a second head.  
  
'Whoa.... What's with her? I don't think she has ever raised her voice before.... It's actually scaring me....' Lita thought as she stared in shock at Amy, the patient one, the brain, the one out of all of them that never got impatient or disoriented. Mina and Rei had similar looks on their faces, faces that said "Has an alien abducted my friend Amy when I wasn't looking?"  
  
After a second or two, Amy finally realized what had just happened. She looked at the 3 pairs of eyes staring at her and blushed. "Gomen... I didn't mean to yell...it's just...."  
  
"It's okay... hehehe... I guess everyone has to let it out once in a while, huh?" Mina said. Amy just looked down at her hands in her lap in response, still ashamed of herself. The other 3 scouts exchanged looks of worry and released the breaths they had absentmindedly been holding. There was a moment of dreadful silence, covering the room in its innocent yet evil  
  
Then, "Well, I guess we should continue to research...." Rei looked around at her friends who all nodded their agreement. With this said, they all resumed doing their research.  
  
*********************(Tokyo Airport)********************************  
  
Darien clasped on his seatbelt as instructed through the speaker. He could feel the plane starting to lower itself. Soon, they were slowing down. Looking out, Darien saw the all too familiar lights of Tokyo. His heart gave a content jump and his voice caught in his throat as he stared out of the window, admiring the view of good, ol' Tokyo. Traffic was heavy along the roads, and thousands of light, either from buildings or cars, illuminated the spectacular landscape of the place.  
  
The Speaker was now announcing their arrival at the biggest airport of Tokyo, Japan. Darien started packing up his few belongings, as he had left most of his stuff back in NYC.  
  
*********************(Tokyo Airport)********************************  
  
"There he is!!!" Lita exclaimed. The other 3 girls looked at her, then, at the place Lita was pointing to. Sure enough, occupying that particular space was Darien. He was easy to recognize as he hadn't changed much after 5 years. He seemed to still have the same taste in clothes and the relaxed and calm he possessed was still with him. Of course, he was also still just as handsome as the day he left.  
  
The girls all looked at him in awe, not realizing that they were staring, until Darien finally spotted them and started to walk over. There was a smile on his face, but it soon turned into an uncertain frown when he didn't receive any smiles from the faces of the 4 young women who he hadn't seen for years.  
  
"Hey girls!! I missed you guys so much!!" Darien exclaimed, trying to start a conversation. At this, the girls broke into grins and started to take turns hugging Darien, welcoming him back home.  
  
"Whatdoya say we go back to my house and talk. I'm sure we have a lot of that to do," Rei said. Darien nodded in agreement, but suddenly noticed that there was someone missing. Someone that was very important to him and this group of old friends. SERENA.  
  
"Um... Where's Serena?" His question was faced with a long silence. The girls certainly were holding their breaths. None of them wanted to be the one to tell Darien the bad news, especially when they had just met him after such a long time. However, they couldn't just let the silence stretch forever, or at least Amy thought 'cause she decided to reply.  
  
"Well... We're really not sure about that...." Darien stood there trying to comprehend what Amy had just said. Everyone continued to hold their breaths as he absorbs the information, anticipating a very nasty blowout from Darien. And, so they got that.  
  
"WHAT??!!!!!"  
  
A/N: Ok... I'm finally done with this chapter. Once again, sorry. I'll try to make future chapters faster... hehe... really sorry!! Hope everyone is still interested in this story and continues to R&R!!! 


	9. Found

**A/N: **Hiya! Thx to Sabrina for emailing me for the next Chapter and all of you fans out there who have so patiently waited for this story to progress. I'm sorry it took so long but I'm starting to run out of ideas, unfortunately. However, I would try my best to keep this story up since it is one of my best… heh….Chapter 9 is up!! Enjoy!!

**From Last Chapter:**

"Um… Where's Serena?" His question was faced with a long silence. The girls certainly were holding their breaths. None of them wanted to be the one to tell Darien the bad news, especially when they had just met him after such a long time. However, they couldn't just let the silence stretch forever, or at least Amy thought 'cause she decided to reply.

"Well… We're really not sure about that…." Darien stood there trying to comprehend what Amy had just said. Everyone continued to hold their breaths as he absorbs the information, anticipating a very nasty blowout from Darien. And, so they got that.

"WHAT??!!!!!"

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 9**

The girls and Darien sat in Rei's living room, pondering over what to do. Darien had just been told of the truth. He had learned that the girls hadn't been able to find Serena. He had also learned that _his_ Serena had been living with a _guy_ called Max the whole time. And yet, they couldn't find her.

So, as the girls ponder over their next move, Darien ponders on what kind of relationship Serena has with Max. He thinks about his encounter with Serena at the

café across the street from his office.

'She said that she had a boyfriend……. Is it true? Oh god, please don't let it be true. Please don't be so cruel. This can't happen. Not when I finally am willing to tell her the truth. This can't be true… it can't…. it can't!!!!'

"IT CAN'T!" The girls literally jumped a mile as this suddenly flew out of the mouth of the one and only most desirable young man anyone in Japan would want. The said young man covers his mouth just as quickly as he opened it, and turns into a shade of bright red.

"Sorry…." Darien mutters. The girls just look on with faces full of understanding and pity. Knowing what he was putting him self through, they left him alone after saying that they all had stuff to do. Darien barely nodded, knowing their real intentions. To let him think about everything alone. As the girls, one by one left the room, closing the door, Darien sunk his face into his hands, bending his back forwards in pain and remorse. How sorry he felt for leaving her in the first place.

'What do I do Serena? What do I do to get you back? Will you ever come back to me? Why is this happening? Someone tell me?!!! Why?!! Does this world hate me so much….. Why must I suffer like this……. I can't take this anymore… If you don't come back soon, I don't know what's gonna happen to me, Serena…. So, please come back please…..'

As the young man raises his head, we can see that he is crying, crying soundlessly. Tears drip from his chin, leading up to rivers of salt water. Again, a girl has made Darien cry. And, the same girl for that matter. Shifting position, Darien sinks into the sofa, slowly falling asleep.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The girls were once again searching for a way to contact Serena. This time, they had come over to her room. Her family had been nice enough to actually let them rummage through her room when they had explained the situation to them. So far, there was no luck. The bunny's room disclosed no clue to Serena's whereabouts.

They were just about ready to leave when Amy suddenly shrieked with what seemed to be joy. The other girls rushed over to find Amy holding a piece of paper with "Max" and a telephone number on it. Faces of despair immediately dissolved into ones of happiness. One hand holding the piece of paper and the other holding a cell phone, Amy starts to punch in the telephone number. After doing so, she puts it on speaker phone mode.

The girls hold their breaths as 4 rings pass. Finally, on the 5th ring, a man's voice could be heard.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Max was just out of the shower when his cell phone rang. Serena was sleeping at the moment, so Max had to head out of the bathroom, with a towel wrapped around him, in order to answer the phone.

Shivering, he stumbles into his room, just in time to answer the phone on its last ring.

"Hello?" No reply was heard and Max was afraid that the person, who ever it was, had hung up.

"Hello? Hello?" This was repeated several times before he heard an answer.

"Hi, is this Max?" It was a woman's voice. One that seemed timid and calm, one that seemed to elope Max into a state of peacefulness.

"Yeah… Who is this?"

"Max, is… Serena there?" This was once again a different voice. The question was asked hesitantly as if scared of the answer.

"Yeah… she is… she's sleeping…. right next to me…" Max says uncertainly. A group of gasps could be heard and Max realizes how his statement might sound. (Sleeping next to her... oooo… maybe he should sleep with me…. Haha…. Jk…)

"No!! I don't mean it that way! I meant… She's… She's sleeping on the couch at the moment….." By this statement, relief sounded through the phone.

"So… uh… could you wake her up? We have something important we need to talk to her about."

"Sure. Wait up." Max puts the phone face down on the table and proceeds to wake up Serena.

"Hey, Serena…. Wake up. You have a telephone call, pretty important from the sound of it…." He starts to shake Serena. Serena opens one eye slowly to find Max's confused face in front of her. She blushed unknowingly at the close proximity of their faces as well as the fact that he wasn't wearing anything but a towel on the half of his body.

She could smell the fresh scent of soap he used and the jasmine flavored shampoo he had just used. Most of all, she could see his chest and his perfectly broad shoulders. Serena knew she was staring, but she couldn't help it. His body just seemed so…. mesmerizing… Max, finally realizing that he wasn't in right attire of clothes, blushes too.

"You have a call," Max says, remembering the reason he had waken her up. Serena snaps out of her daydream and looks at him in confusion. Max stares right back with his own confused gaze. After a minute, she stands up, walks to the phone and picks it up. Max retreats into the bathroom to put some clothes on. (You don't need to…. )

"Hello?"

"Serena. God it's nice to hear your voice again….." Serena gasps as excitement builds up in her. She couldn't believe it. Rei was on the phone, she was talking to her! Rei, Amy, Lita, Mina….. It seemed so long ago that she had last talked to the girls when it had only been a few weeks ago she left them. God she missed them so much it hurt. She almost wished she could just fly back to Japan right then and there. Almost….. But she couldn't leave until things where right between her and Darien.

"Omg…. Rei! I can't believe how long it feels since I last heard or saw any of you! I miss you guys so much! Do you believe what happened to me in the past few weeks? I met him! I met him so many times I almost think that god is setting us up. I mean coincidence can only be for so many times, right? I mean what's with all the crazy meetings? "

-----------------( Tokyo, Japan-Hino Shrine)--------------------------------

Rei smiled as she heard her best friends voice, even if Serena was just babbling. Hearing it, she remembers the first time she had met Serena. It was such a classic. They were fighting before they even laid eyes on each other. (I actually don't know what did happened when they first met since I practically didn't see any of the beginning episodes of SM, but well….. just bear with me… it's my story… lol)

She could still picture the scene like it was yesterday… However, her smile vanished at the thought that she would have to be the bearer of bad news. Rei sighed tiredly and began to fill Serena in on the happenings of Tokyo and what their next step should be in protecting the world.

The End….

LOL…. JK I'm just being weird…. Neway…. Plz review!!! I won't start the next chapter until I get a decent amount of Reviews!!! Ok… Laters

-Teenslayer


	10. Back to the place everything started

**A/N:** Hey, Guess wut??!! I actually updated!!! Eh... da format isn't exactly wut it shud be.. buh.. o wells!!! Nothing to say aside from dat... except thx for all the reviews n dat chapter 10 is up... I'm starting to wonder how many chapters this story would have.... I'm getting tired... heh... well enjoy!!

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 10**

"Wait, so you're telling me that I have to get back to Tokyo tomorrow?!!" Serena was dumbfounded. How could so much have happened in Tokyo when she had just left... If she goes back now... then coming to New York would be a waste.....

"What about Darien...." Serena asks herself in a barely audible voice. However, the ever attentive Rei heard it as if she had yelled. Actually, Rei would've known Serena was asking herself that even if she hadn't said it. Almost right away, Serena heard a long sigh on the other side of the phone. She didn't know what to think of it, but it probably wasn't a good sign. Anxiety and dread washed over her in huge waves as she waited for Rei to say what her heart had already guessed.

"He's already here. He's in Tokyo. Darien is just next door to me in the Hino Shrine." Even though Serena had almost been completely certain this would be what her best friend would say, nothing could stop the gasp that sounded from her mouth. Serena covered her mouth as she froze, unable to think of anything at the moment.

'HE's in Tokyo. That means you're going to see HIM again!! Be happy, Serena!! Be happy!!' However, nothing could cover the feeling of dread that leaked into every inch of her body. She couldn't believe this. She had escaped him so many times, but now she would be forced to work with him, to fight along-side him, AGAIN.

'Like how it was before he had left.' Serena wasn't sure if she should be happy or angry. Happy that she would have a reason to defy herself and be with Darien. Angry that she would be forced into being with someone she didn't really want to see all that much at the moment. You could say, after all the years, and her resolve to find him, she was still bitter towards him. She could still remember that night, when he had left her there, crying her heart out, begging for him to not leave her.

Serena didn't know how long she stood there unmovingly, expression blank, hand covering mouth and tears sliding down her face as unbidden memories resurfaced. When she did come back to the world, it was from Rei yelling at her to talk to her.

-------------------------( Tokyo, Japan-Hino Shrine)-------------------------

Rei knew she would take this news badly, but she hadn't thought of waiting for _hours_, well actually3 minutes, for Serena to talk again. The other girls had left to let her talk to Serena in peace, like she had requested. The silence droned on and on. Eventually, she got tired of the silence and started yelling into the phone for Serena to give her some response. A few minutes of yelling later, she finally got a sentence out of Serena.

"S...Sorry, Rei... I just.... spaced out..."

"I can tell." Rei didn't mean to be so blunt, but she couldn't help it. The silence was just killing her.

"Well.... What should I do now?" Serena asked in a quiet whisper. Rei sighed, while thinking that she had been doing way too much of just that lately. Sighing.

"Well, Serena. You could come back to Tokyo and we could help you work this out."

"No! No... I c-can't, I'm sorry..." Rei heard the terror and uncertainty in the voice and sighed yet again. 'You would have thought I was telling her to go hand herself in to the police. However, I don't think she would be nearly half as scared if that was the case...'

"Please, Serena. We need your help. We can't win this fight without you...." Rei was sounding desperate now, trying in vain to get through to Serena. She knew telling the blonde about Darien's presence would have this affect on her.

"I can't, Rei... how would I act around him..." Serena's voice sounded so small, so vulnerable. Rei couldn't stand it anymore.

"Stop it, Serena!! When did you become such an idiot for love!! Stop being a coward already!! What can you do in New York if he's not there!! You know you still have feelings for him and you also know, just as well as I do, that the feeling is mutual for him!!! Why can't you just face it already!! Come to Tokyo and work things out with him!! Unless you're too scared!!"

Rei was completely out of breath, however she felt good after the outburst. In the back of her head, she knew this wasn't what she was supposed to do. But whenever she tried to comfort Serena, she just ended up blowing up in her face. It was always like that. It wasn't that the blonde really made her so furious, it just it pained Rei to think that she couldn't do anything to help her. This was something that Serena had to figure out on her on and all Rei could do was to talk some sense into her.

"Rei...." Rei could almost picture Serena on the other side of the line, biting her lower lip and trying unsuccessfully to keep her tears from falling.

"Serena... just come back... please... you know nothing will happen if you don't talk to him... I can see how miserable how he is and I know you must be just as miserable. He still cares for you, Serena. There's no doubt about that. Just give him a chance to make up for his mistakes. Give yourself a chance, Serena. Everyone wants to see the old, forgiving and cheerful Serena again." Rei held her breath, wishing with all her might that her last sentence had gone through to Serena.

"Ok..." It was so faint, Rei almost thought she hadn't heard it at all.

"What did you say?"

"I said... OK. I'll come back." Rei let out the breath that she hadn't known she had been holding.

"Thank GOD!!"

"No, thank you Rei... Thank you for talking some sense into me, as always." Rei smiled, the first smile for a long while.

"No problem, Serena. I'll always be the one to do just that, always."

"Alright then, I'll see you in a few days. I'll try to get tickets for the earliest flight. At latest, I should be in Tokyo by the day after Tomorrow. I'll fill you in on the details when I actually find my ticket. K?"

"Now, that sounds like the Meat-Ball Head."

"HEY!!!" Rei laughed at the response and soon later, we hear Serena echoing it. Everything was going well. Serena had agreed to talk to Darien and soon they would all be united to fight another baddie.

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Serena had just placed the phone back in its cradle. She raises her head, a happy smile still on her face, in time to see Max come out of his room.

"So, you got everything figured out, I'm guessing?" He had just heard Serena laughing a minute before and had guessed, with relief, that it was safe to come out of his room. Seeing the big smile on Serena's faced made him all the more relieved.

"Yup! I'm going back to Tokyo in a few days!" Serena chirped as if it was the most normal statement ever. However, Max was staring at her, wide-eyed.

"WHAT?!! But, you just got here!! I thought you were at least gonna stay for a few months... Why are you going back so suddenly?" Serena walked over to him and grins.

"I just realized someone important is waiting for me back in Tokyo. Sorry, Max. I really do want to spend some more time with you... Hey, wait a minute.... Don't you have a break coming up?? Why don't you come back with me?!! I'm sure you haven't been in Tokyo for ages!!!" Serena smiles at her ingenious plan.

"Um... I don't think that would be so good... I was thinking about catching up on some work...." Max states uncomfortably.

"During the break??!!" Serena rolled her eyes. "You are impossible. Come on!! It'll be fun!! I promise. You can meet my parents, sure you haven't seen them for a long time! And you can meet all my friends, see the school I used to go to, my house, o yeah... the arcade I was obsessed with......"

"OKOK... I get it... you really want me to go don't you?" Max stares into Serena's baby-blue eyes to find his answer. And most certainly, he found it. It was so clear in her eyes. Max smiles.

"OK. I'll go." And all hell went loose. Serena started screaming and jumped onto Max, hugging him to the point that he almost couldn't breathe. All the while, he was laughing and hugging her back.

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They were in the airport now. It has been a day later. Serena had found two of the cheapest tickets to Tokyo that she had ever encountered. So pleased was she of her bargain, she had used the extra money to take Max out to dinner the night before.

It was the most fun the two had ever had. Max had gone out to dinner with Serena many times before, but this time it had been different. This time, Serena was actually smiling, really smiling. And she looked so much better with that cheerful expression, he couldn't stop thinking. Remembering yesterday's events, Max still couldn't wipe the grin off his face.

Currently, Serena was busy looking around the airport for directions to Gate 28 with Max following with that idiotically boyish grin on his face. Getting the directions, Serena turned to face Max and almost laughed out loud at the grin Max was still wearing. It seemed as if it would never leave his face again. He seemed so cute at the moment.

'He almost looks like an excited young boy on the verge of his greatest adventure." She smiled to herself. Snapping out of her reverie, she suddenly noticed the time.

"We should get going. The plane will be leaving soon!!" And so, Serena raced off, with Max not far behind, to her gate just in time to board the plane not unlike every morning of her teenage years when she would just barely make it to her school.

---------------------------( Tokyo, Japan-Airport)-----------------------------

Serena and Max had just arrived at Tokyo. Max was taking in the sights around him. He seemed to find a certain little toddler very amusing. Serena, meanwhile, was looking all over for a familiar face, namely, her friends' faces.

And, after a while, she did find them. All four of her friends were there, their eyes searching for her as well.

"Hey! Over here!!" Taking her luggage with her and motioning for Max to follow her, she hurried over to her friends. Once there, the watergates opened up as she hugged each of her friends one by one. Soon, the girls realize that a young man had accompanied Serena.

"Hey, who might this hotty be?" Mina asks. Max blushes at her comment.

"This is Max. He's the guy I've been living with for so long and he took great care of me." Max blushes even more if possible and Serena laughs.

"Oh? Well I think you deserve a thank you for treating our friend so greatly." Lita chirps. By this time, Max is as red as a tomato. All five girls burst into laughter. It seemed that they would never stop. Finally, Serena managed to stop.

"I think we should leave the poor guy alone. Hahaha..." The other girls agreed to Max's extreme relief.

"All right, so let's go!" Rei takes some of Serena's baggage and leads the group out of the airport. The other girls follow her lead by helping with the rest of the baggage. Once out, they decided that they would take two taxis to Rei's place.

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The two taxis had just arrived in front of the Hino Shrine. We see Rei, Serena and Max come out of one taxi while Mina, Lita and Amy came out of the other one. The luggage were slowly taken out of the trunks with the help of the taxi drivers. Meanwhile, Serena was having a mental breakdown. She knew, once she got inside those doors, she would see HIM. She knew she shouldn't delay her meeting with HIM since it was inevitable, but she just felt so scared. She didn't know what to do when she would see him.

"Serena, are you ok?" It was Max, caring as always. Serena managed a small smile.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me. You should worry about the girls. Heheee.... I'm sure they've all got their eyes on you." Serena teased. Max blushes yet again and chuckles along with her.

"Ready to go in?" Rei looks to Serena and Serena realizes the double meaning behind her words. 'Yea... I'll be ok, Rei... thanks though.' Serena nods at her and Rei smiles. Then, they were walking. The walk up the stairs seemed to take much too little time to Serena. She had always thought it took forever to go up those stairs, but this time she wished it could take another few hours.

A while later, Serena can only stare as Rei pushes open the door. Behind it, stood a very disheveled Darien and two cats, one purple-black and the other white. Serena barely notices the two cats as she looks on with horror-filled eyes at Darien. She barely manages to duck her head before Darien attempted to look straight into her eyes. Her eyes were the "windows to her soul."

Serena was sure, with one look at her eyes, Darien would know everything. She had tried to keep her emotions in check every time she had saw him for the past weeks, but she failed to keep up the charade at this moment. Even with this "new" look, she could still feel herself getting hot. One look at him could practically set her ablaze.

She could almost picture herself kissing his full lips and being in those strong arms of his. With all the emotion one look at him could stir up in her, it was all she could do not to run up to him and loose herself in his midnight-blue eyes. Instead, she just acknowledged his presence and ran into a random room. This just happened to be the one that the other girls had already started to place her luggage in. Max was in the room just next to hers and Darien was on the other side, from what she could gather. 'So, I'm in the middle.... Great...'

(I'm not sure how many rooms Rei has, but just work with me here. N... I know it's weird that Serena isn't living with her family, but I just thought the story would be better if they all stayed at Rei's.)

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They had all done with the luggage. It was nearly 6:00 P.M. now. Mina, Lita and Amy had all gone back to their respective homes. They had all agreed, including the two cats, to the surprise of everyone, that since Serena had just got of the plane, they should have a rest before talking about the abnormal. All of this had been decided without the presence of Max, however.

Throughout the entire meeting, which only lasted 5 minutes, Serena had been trying to look anywhere but at Darien. Darien had been attempting to look only and solely at Serena and trying to get her to look back, without success. Eventually, he had given up and gone into his own room, eyes pleading desperately with Serena to talk to him. Serena had ignored it and gone to her own room, whispering a quick good night to Max, which had most definitely sent a look jealousy on Darien's face.

'Who is this guy to her anyway?'

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Darien

'Why can't she just give me a chance to apologize... I know I hurt her but.... God... She should know that I regret what I had done. How can she not see how much I love her? And, what's the whole deal with this Max guy. I don't get it? Is there something between them?' Darien grunts in anger. 'There better not. I might just not be able to stop myself from breaking a leg or two of his if he has got anything intimate to do with Serena...God, why is this bothering me so much anyway?!!! It's not like I saw them kissing or making out or anything like that...Sigh....' Darien decides he has to get some sleep, but knows that it's just an excuse to not think of her and a certain boy.

**T.B.C.....**

**A/N:** Alrighty... This chapter is done... Next one will have some battle sequences and some jealousy too!! Darien will certainly be seeing green. LOL..... well, Please!!! Review!!! Otherwise u don't get the next chap!! HAHA JK Laters!!

­**-Teenslayer**


	11. Jealousy is in the air

**A/N:** Hey, i made you guys wait again.. hehe.. seems lyk a bad habit… sigh.. well it's not entirely ma fault.. I was busy… -cough- o yeah... sumone plzzzzz help me... da star thing (u kno.. da ding u get wen u press shift and 8) dusn appear wen i upload... can neone tell me y and how i can make it appear? also, my indents dun appear... neone can help me? u can either leave me a review or email me at neway… chapter 11 is up so dun kill me!! .

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 11**

Darien awoke to the ever persistent rays of blinding sunshine. He covered his face with a pillow to block out the brightness. A few minutes later, a lawn mower is heard. We hear a grunt from the young man under the covers. With a frustrated yell, he sits up in bed and, after a while, proceeds to climb out of bed. Slipping his feet into a pair of slippers, he walks to the door. Sighing, he opens the door, bracing for a new day.

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In another room, we can hear a girl cursing at an alarm clock. After a while, Serena, still grumbling, makes it out of the room only to be greeted by none other than Darien. Midnight-blue eyes met baby-blue ones. Serena felt dizzy and barely realized that Darien was speaking. She could vaguely see his mouth opening, but everything was in slow motion.

"Good morning."

"……."

Seeing that Serena wasn't replying, Darien gives her a concerned look. Suddenly, Serena blinks, and a second later, blushes deeply.

"Uh… yeah… you too… I mean… g-good morning." Serena stammers, while trying her best to not look at Darien. She could, however, feel his eyes on her, never leaving her burning face for a minute. The intensity of the stare was enough to burn a hole through her.

"Um…. well, we should go join the others," She states nervously.

"Yeah…"

With that said, the two started walking towards the living room, where everyone was already gathered. The sweet scent of pancakes welcomed them as both looked around at the various activities taking place. Amy was working on her computer, a box of cookies and a glass of milk next to her, and Lita was busy flipping channels on the couch. The two cats were deep in conversation in a corner. Headed for the kitchen, which was connected to the living room through an opening (no door), Serena and Darien merely exchanged good mornings with Lita and Amy.

There, Mina and Rei were busy flirting with Max. Each had a plate of neatly stacked pancakes in front of them. Max looked considerably red, most likely from the girls' ruthless teasing. When he saw the 'ex-couple' walk in, he quickly made his way over to Serena, in an attempt to escape from Rei and Mina's "cruelness." Serena laughed while Darien looked rather annoyed. It seemed as if his mere presence bothered Darien. This and the fact that Max was standing just a little too close to Serena.

Max noticed Darien's dark expression and wondered why the other guy disliked him so. 'What have I ever done to him?' Ignoring the look, Max turned to Serena.

"Good morning bunny! Come eat breakfast with us! I made the pancakes. Here, you sit down and I'll get some for you." Max pulls Serena over, leads her to the table and sits her down. Meanwhile, Darien is fuming at his 'intimate' actions while Mina and Rei looks on with amusement. As Max goes to fix Serena's breakfast, Darien stalks over and sits down right next to Serena, to her dismay. She had been hoping he would stay further away from her, as she was having trouble controlling her emotions.

Max returns a second later, placing the plate of pancakes in front of Serena with a fork and knife. He sees Darien, hesitates, then asks if he would also like some pancakes. Darien stares at him somewhat hatefully, but nods. Max walks away yet again to fetch more pancakes.

"So…. What's up…" Mina says, trying to stir up a conversation.

"…...." Darien replies by staring at her while Serena seems to not have even heard her.

"Eh…. Are you guys ok?" Rei asks tentatively. Just then, Max returns with another plate of pancakes. He sets it down in front of Darien.

"Thanks….."

"No problem!" Max replies in his chirpiest voice, trying to get on Darien's good side.

He proceeds to sit down across from Serena to Darien's displeasure. 'Sigh…. Why am I so upset every time he is the teeniest bit near Serena…. Ugh… I should at least _try_ to get to know him….'

"So…. Max… You live in NY." It came out as more of a statement then a question.

"Yeah! So do you right?"

"Yeah… What do you do?"

"Oh… Well.. Nothing interesting… I'm actually a journalist…."

"Oh. That's nice. So how is journalism? Don't you have many exciting stories to write about?"

Max chuckles, "Not really. Some people might think that, but it's not all that adventurous as it's made out to be."

"I see….." A few minutes of silence follows this last statement until Max decides to speak.

"How about you? What's your job?"

"Oh… Well… I'm a doctor."

"Oh… A doctor… Good money, eh?"

"Well.. It's okay I guess….."

"Oh…."

"……" Another few minutes of silence passes, with all the occupants of the room exchanging glances.

"Well! If you're all done eating, get dressed up! We're going to have a tour of Tokyo! For Max of course," Mina suddenly says, causing Max to blush at the last words. Mina and Rei smirk at the easily-embarrassed young man.

"Ok! Um.. I'm gonna go change then!" Max stands up, glad to get away from the awkward conversation he and Darien were having.

"Wait! I'll come with you!" Mina stands up as well and follows Max out of the room. Now, it was just Rei, Serena and Darien.

"Well.. I'll see you guys later. I'm going to go change as well." Serena stands up and makes her way out of the kitchen, through the living room and into the hallway. She stops at her room and leans against the door. 'Wow… Darien actually tried talking to Max… However awkward it was, at least he tried.. I'll give him points for that… But, what does that mean….' Serena opens the door to her room and walks in. We hear a sigh as she shuts the door.

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'Well.. That was weird… I can't believe Darien attempted to talk to Max! It's so.. unlike him…' Rei steals a glance at Darien. He, in turn has his head bent and is poking at his pancakes with no intention in eating a bite of it.

"Good job." Darien looks up suddenly at Rei, confused at what she was implying. Rei smirked at his ignorance and proceeds to explain. "You tried talking to Max, even though you were jealous of him. It was really 'man' of you to do that." Darien flushes red at her comments, desperately trying to hide his flaming face from her.

'How did she know I was jealous.. Was I that obvious?' As if she could read his mind, Rei nods, grinning at him. Darien groans.

"Ugh… glad you're so perceptive…. Anyway, I'm gonna change… you should too.." Rei give him a nod, along with a knowing smile.

"Don't worry. Serena probably doesn't know that you were jealous. She's too dense to even acknowledge it, even though it was right in front of her." Darien glares at Rei, causing her to break into laughter. With a scowl, Darien flees the kitchen, away from Rei's mischievous gaze. Rei shakes her head before deciding to follow his example and heads to her own room.

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"Wow! So, this is the famous arcade you guys used to go to! They have everything here! Let's go in!" Max exclaims, his boyish grin back on his face. Everyone laughs with the exception of Darien, who had been sullen ever since they had gotten out of the house.

Walking into the arcade, they were all greeted by Andrew, the ever cheery blonde hotty, who mina immediately started flirting with. Andrew, somehow, escaped from her to welcome his old friend back.

"So, welcome back dude! It was quite… boring without you here. I'm glad you came back, even if only temporarily." Darien smiles, his first real smile since he had first seen Serena in New York. He claps Andrew on the back and begins to talk about everything his blonde friend had missed.

Meanwhile, Serena is moping around, for once, not busy with another Sailor V game. Instead, Max was playing while she was instructing him on how to play. Mina and Lita were off playing a racing game. Rei and Amy were at the counter, just overlooking everyone and talking. And so, this went on for a while.

----------------------(around 3 hours later)----------------------------------

-Beep-

Amy and Rei exchange a look and quickly headed to the girls bathroom. Amy starts rummaging through her bag. She takes out a round object with a screen, which was blank at the moment. Warily, she presses a red button right under the screen. Instantly, the screen lights up and Luna's face appears.

"Amy! The youmas are attacking!"

"Youma**_s_**?!" Rei asks, hoping she had heard wrong. Next to her, Amy was deathly pale.

"Yes… I'm afraid there is more than one… So far, Artemis and I have tracked down 5 of them. They seem to be increasing in number though! You better inform the others quickly. We'll meet you in the park! We'll talk more then! Hurry!" With that, the screen goes blank again. Rei turns to Amy with a horror-stricken face and finds that Amy mirrors the look.

"There's 5 and they're increasing? Omigod… they're getting stronger and stronger… how much longer can we hold them off…"

"No, we can't think this way, Amy! We will find a way to beat them! We always have! Remember?!" Rei stares at her, willing Amy to believe her words, while she herself wasn't convinced. Amy nods stonily, but a determined look overcomes her suddenly.

"Alright! You're right Rei. We better tell the others! Com'on let's go!" Abruptly, the two literally flew out of the bathroom.

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"WHAT?!!!! NOW?!!" Mina screeches. Rei winces and covers her ears. Half the population of the arcade turns towards them and glares. Mina blushes and starts apologizing profusely.

"Go tell Serena! I'll tell Darien!" Rei whispers. Mina nods, recovering, and rushes off in search of a certain 'meat-ball head.'

T.B.C R&R please!!


	12. The Longest Battle

**A/N:** Ok.. I'm back after lyk 5 months. Ehehe really sorry again. But now dat it's summer, I'll be getting more chapters up faster (hopefully -.- ). Well dat is if my dad doesn't decide to cut off my internet…. Enjoy chapter 12!

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 12**

The Sailor Senshi and Tuxedo Mask are seen running down the street.

"What did you tell Max?" Venus asks while gasping for air. They had been running for quite a while, but luckily, they were almost at the park. 'Just a while more…..'

"Well, I said that we were getting him something…. and that it was a surprise…" Sailor Moon answers dismissively. Panting, she continues to run quite a while before she realizes that she was the only one running. Coming to a stop, she turns around to see everyone staring at her with perplexed expressions.

"What?"

"You couldn't think of anything better than that?" Jupiter sighs and starts running again. Sailor Moon seems to be seriously contemplating the question when Mars speaks up.

"That must be the lousiest lie ever." Sailor Moon searches for the source of this comment only to find Sailor Mars eyeing her, as if daring her to make a comeback.

"What was that!" Sailor Moon briskly walks over to the Fire Senshi, glaring the whole way.

"You heard me!" The raven-haired girl replies, glaring right back. However, we can see a hint of a grin on her face. The two, almost simultaneously, engage in a staring contest.

"ENOUGH!" Everyone, including Jupiter who had stopped running a while back, turns to look at Mercury. "We don't have time for this. We have to get going." That said, she starts running, the others following her example, dumbfounded by her outburst.

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"YOU CAN NOT BEAT US!" Maniac laughter ensues as the youma shoots laser beams at the scouts. The scouts and Tuxedo Mask scattered, each looking for a place to hide in order to evade the blasts. There were several other youma crawling about, but it seemed this one was the leader. Mercury had said that if they beat the boss, his minions will eventually scatter. Even so, it won't be a fair fight. The Senshi were largely outnumbered even with the aid of Tuxedo Mask.

From where Sailor Moon stood, behind a tree, she could tell the battle wouldn't be ending any time soon at the current pace. 'Hiding won't solve anything… it'll just drag the battle on forever..' Deciding to take the offensive, Sailor Moon steps away from the cover of the tree and out into the open.

"MOON TIARA ACTION," she yells. The tiara creates a long gash on the youma's neck, eliciting a howl of pain from it. The monster glares at its attacker with fury, but before it could do anything, another cry is heard.

"BURNING MANDALA!" The burning rings made a direct hit with the youma's stomach and it stumbled forward in agony, falling flat onto the floor. The other scouts immediately started pelting it with attacks.

"VENUS CRESCENT BEAM!"

"SHINE AQUA ILLUSION!"

"SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

Tuxedo Mask ended the wild assortment of attacks with a present of his own, a string of deadly roses aimed at the monster's head. The youma lay there, listless. All around them, the other youma seemed to find it in their thick, nonintellectual skull to be scared. They stared at the scouts for a minute longer before they all raced off, as one.

"That's right! You should be intimidated!" Venus yelled, raising a fist proudly. The other scouts sweatdropped.

"So much talk and no real damage… typical youma." Mars mocked, walking around the still body, inspecting it for a while before raising her eyes to her friends and smirking.

Jupiter chuckled. "Be careful of what you say, Rei. It might just come back to haunt you for that." Everyone laughed with the exception of Tuxedo Mask. 'No… this seems too easy. Almost as if the enemy had planned for us to win. Or maybe for us to _think_ we have won…'

Tuxedo Mask caught a sudden twitch of the youma's hand, just barely noticeable, but it was there. That was all the evidence he needed. 'I was right! It's _not_ dead!' His eyes widened as he sees the youma raise its laser-shooting hands and aim them at Mars.

"WATCH OUT!" Before anyone could react, Tuxedo Mask had made a mad dash towards Mars, barely in time to push her out of the way of the deadly beam, earning himself a thin trail of blood from his right arm. They both landed in the bushes, a couple of steps away from Mars's original position.

Sailor Moon looks at him with worry-filled eyes for a minute, before she decided to focus on the youma instead. The other scouts were already positioned in attack stances.

The youma growled, blood dripping off it from the numerous cuts adorning it. With a yell, Sailor Jupiter sprang into action, jump-kicking the monster in the head. The youma didn't budge. Instead, it laughed, a hideous laugh that would make anyone's bones jitter.

Sailor Jupiter gawks at it, surprised that her attack had not even the tiniest impact on the youma. As if reading her mind, the youma smirks or at the very least, attempts to put a smirk on its mutilated face. The end result is just a very disfigured and repulsive face. The youma suddenly sent out a barrage of beams. The scouts took cover behind various objects once again.

"HAHAHA Hiding again are we? Well, you can't hide forever!" The youma continues sending blast after blast of super-charged rays, attempting to demolish the Senshi's defenses. The beams spiral out from the monster, seemingly endless and deadly. They chip away at the trees that serve as cover for the scouts and set the bushes afire. All in all, the place looked like a disaster area.

"AGHH!" Mercury's clothes had caught fire from the blazing bushes she was hiding behind. Sailor Jupiter, at her side, immediately started to smolder the flames. After a good two minutes or so, the flames had been dealt with and it left two soot-covered Senshi. The youma cackled at their comical display.

"JUPITER OAK EVOLUTION!" Fist clenched and hair in disarray, Jupiter seems pissed at the youma for laughing at her. The electrified leaves charge at the youma, carving long lines into the youma's skin and, afterwards, leaving streaks of shimmering red lines on it. The youma winced and glanced at its skin, mesmerized by the dark red forming on the streaks. The blood spill from the new wounds as the youma looks up at its attacker and growls.

"YOU"LL PAY FOR THAT!" That said, it charges at Jupiter with outstretched arms, as the other Senshi look on, wide-eyed. Right before it reached Jupiter, it seemed to disappear, only to reappear in back of her and dealing her a heavy blow to her head, knocking her out.

"JUPITER!" The Senshi ran to Jupiter, including the now-conscience Fire Senshi, afraid for their friend. Venus was the first one there and she promptly started pulling the Thunder Senshi behind the cover of some trees. Pressing a hand to the back of Jupiter's head to slow the blood flow, she was relieved to hear her friend groan softly. Looking back at the battlefield, she conceived that her fellow Senshi had been stopped by the youma. It seemed that she would have to stay with Jupiter for now.

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Tuxedo Mask stirs and slowly sits up, wincing slightly as his arm throbs painfully. His cloak is torn in several places and his hat and mask are missing. A piece of red cloth is tied around his arm and certain parts are stained a darker red from his blood. On the fabric, we can see the words, Rei Hino.

'It's Rei's…. what happened….' Tuxedo Mask shakes his head to get rid of the fuzziness clouding his brain. 'Rei….Youma…Blood…' And suddenly he recalled what had happened. He had pushed her out of the way and the laser beam had literally sliced across his arm. Tuxedo Mask shuddered, remembering the excruciating pain it brought.

A sudden yell brought him back to the present. 'Shit… They need help…. How long have I been out?' He slowly stood up, wavering slightly on unsteady feet, to see Mercury fly past him, right into a park bench. He turned slowly to the Water Senshi's attacker with narrowed eyes. 'It is going to pay.'

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"MERCURY!" The remaining two Senshi look on as another one of their friends is knocked out, each glaring hatefully at the youma. 'GOD DAMMIT, WHY ISN'T IT DEAD YET?' Mars yells at herself in frustration. 'It should have been dead long ago… Why are the youmas getting stronger?'

"MARS FLAME SNIPER!" Mars shouts, determination and anger in her strong voice. The youma stares in shock at the heat that seems to be emitting from her in waves. The arrow pierces its eye and it cries out in agony.

"AGGGHHH MY EYE! GET BACK HERE! I'LL KILLL YOU!" The youma staggers about blindly, trying to get revenge on Mars and failing miserably as Sailor Mars jumps out of its way. Its hand, instead, manages to sweep Sailor Moon off her feet, knocking her back several feet. The Fire Senshi, startled, races toward Sailor Moon, but before she got there, Tuxedo Mask was at Sailor Moon side. Mars comes to a stop and turns to face the youma again. 'Argg! How long is this going to take?'

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"Are you ok?" Sailor Moon looks up to see Tuxedo Mask kneeling next to her, looking at her with worry. She surveys his appearance, relieved that he didn't seem too beat up. 'His hat and mask are missing and his arm is bleeding, but otherwise he seems ok… Thank God.'

"Serena? Are you ok? Answer me!" Sailor Moon blinks and a second later, reverts to a cold look.

"I'm fine," she answers looking away at Mars as she says so. A flicker of annoyance as well as hurt appeared on Tuxedo Mask's face, but was replaced a minute later by a look of determination as he studies the youma.

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Mars jumps out of the way of one of the youma's massive laser-bound arms, nimbly escaping getting a concussion. The youma continues swinging its arm wildly, trying to strike the miko, despite clamping a hand over its tightly shut eyes.

"BURNING MANDALA." The rings scorch the youma's already burnt skin, adding to its already heavily wounded body. The youma staggers pitifully.

"HYAAAH!" Tuxedo Mask appears next to Mars and deals the youma its deathblow in the form of a storm of roses. The youma finally collapses onto its knees and seconds later falls flat on its face, dissolving rapidly into a green liquid. Seeing that the youma had finally been defeated, Tuxedo Mask finally relaxes, shoulders slumped over in fatigue. Next to him, Mars falls to the ground, eyes dull and unfocused, staring at nothing.

A few feet away, Sailor Moon lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding as she looks at the slimy green liquid that the youma had become. Surrounded by trees, Venus looks on placidly. 'This has been the longest battle yet… with the most casualties too. Not to mention the fact that Darien and Serena are back with us… I don't know if we can withstand the next fight… sigh…. It's only going to get harder….'

**T.B.C**

Well there's Chapter 12. How was it? I know…. There isn't much going on, but just bear with me plzzz. Hehe… R&R

-Teenslayer


	13. The Hospital

**A/N: **Heyy readers! thank you sooo much for the reviews. someone asked me wat season this is in? im not exactly sure either. when I started writing this fic, (3 years ago?)I had planned for it to be one chapter only n I never thought bout the season… so I really dun kno.. it can be w/e season u guys want it to be k? lmao well here's CHAPTER 13!

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 13**

Serena stared at the perfectly white wall in front of her. Rei, sitting next to her, was doing pretty much the same thing. They both had bandages on their faces as well as their arms, but otherwise didn't seem to have any major injuries. The two were in the hospital, more precisely, in the waiting room. Mina, being the cheerful optimist of the group, had gone out to buy some food, saying that "the human body must have food to survive… etc."

Darien was getting his arm patched up in god knows which one of the hundreds of rooms. Lita was having a blood transfusion and from what the doctor had explained in a far too difficult-to-understand language, they had deduced that she wouldn't be waking up for a while. Amy had three broken ribs and a broken arm, so that would put her out of action as well.

That left three scouts and Tuxedo Mask to fend off the increasingly large amount of youma. Not a nice number, at least not against the hundreds of youmas swarming the city. This added to the fact that they would need someone to guard the two helpless Senshi at all times, in case of an attack. Not good at all.

Serena sighed. It seemed that Rei, Mina and herself had come out of this battle fairly unscathed. She wondered how long that would last though. Who knew who the casualties of the next battle would be.

Meanwhile, Rei was going crazy looking at the white wall. 'I think I finally know why I hate the hospital so much. Too much white, too perfect and way to neat and clean. I mean come on, white sheets, white walls, white uniforms, white pillows…. You get the idea. If you weren't crazy when you came in, you certainly will be after spending weeks in the hospital. At least they weren't ingenious enough to paint the walls black. But still…. Arggg… I can't stand this!'

"Serena, I'm going to go out for a minute," Rei whispers, nudging the blonde next too her. Serena stared at her best friend, eyes pleading for Rei to stay with her. It seemed that the hospital was having the same effect on her. Rei looked away, unable to answer her friend's plea. She then proceeded to stand up, still keeping her eyes focused on the floor, and turned her back on Serena.

"Later Serena." Serena stared, wide-eyed, fighting within herself as to whether she should follow Rei or not. We could almost see the internal battle going on until she finally stood, having reached a decision.

"Wait Rei!" She ran up to the miko and grabbed her arm. Rei turned around, confusion in her lavender orbs. Her eyes bored into Serena's, searching for an answer. Suddenly, she understood and offered a small smile. Serena smiled back and they proceeded walk to the door, arm in arm.

* * *

Darien flinched as the doctor started stitching up his arm. The cut was pretty deep, but Darien would much rather it be left alone if stitches hurt this much. It was actually ironic. Here he was a famous doctor and he was afraid of some stitches. 'I guess it's always different when you're the subject…'

Darien sighed. He had heard about the conditions of Amy and Lita. He wished he could prove the doctor's diagnosis, but he could find no error with it. 'Arg! I'm a doctor! I should be able to help them! What use is it to be a doctor if I can't even help my friends! Sigh…. And here I am whining about a few stitches. I'm USELESS!' Darien slammed his hand on the table in front of him, making the doctor jump several feet.

"Sir, you need to calm down. We're almost done." Darien glared at the doctor, his eyes making it clear that he hadn't acted like this because of the pain. The doctor looked down nervously and fussed himself with stitching up the cut as fast as possible and getting the hell out of the room.

Darien sighed again. 'I'm scaring the poor guy….'

* * *

Mina walked down the street at a leisurely pace, barely watching where she was going. She had a lollipop stuck in her mouth and several shopping bags in her right hand. A bandage adorned her forehead and we see several small bandages on her left leg also.

Suddenly, her cell phone rang. Mina reached into her jeans pocket and pulled the gadget out. She took one look at the Caller ID and gasped. They had completely forgotten. Mind racing, she flips open the phone after what seemed like the twentieth ring, and pressed it to her ear, at a loss of words.

"Hello!" Urgent yelling is heard on the line.

"Hello! Mina? Where are you!" Mina swallowed and prepared herself for a major lying fest.

"Hey…. Max."

"Mina! Where are you! Where's Rei and Serena! They never came 'home' yesterday!"

"Max… calm dow-"

"Calm down! How can you tell me to clam down!" Mina winced ad held the phone a few inches away from her ear. Max was now yelling fervently. Not unlinke the time when they had called Darien. 'Sigh… men… can't they stop to think for a minute?'

"Max, they're fine."

"Really? Where are they?"

"Um… I'm not sure…"

"Then how are they fine! Sigh… Weren't they with you yesterday?"

"Um… yea… and then we split up… Maybe you should call Serena or Rei." Mina silently apologized for making her friends deal with Max, but her usually creative mind just wasn't working today. She couldn't conjure up any story if her life depended on it. Her mind was pulling up blanks, only blanks.

"I did! I called Rei, Serena, Amy, Lita and you! You're the only one that picked up!" Mina groaned. She normally would love to talk to Max, or more like flirt with him, but now just wasn't the time. She could already feel a migraine coming.

"Uh… Max… I'll try calling them ok? You just stay put and keep trying to reach them. I'll call you back when I get a hold of them. Alright?" Mina crossed her fingers, pleading with all the gods out there for Max to agree.

"Alright… Bye." Mina let out a breath, relieved.

"Later Max." The conversation ended. Mina sighed, wondering what excuse she and her friends would come up with. Placing her cell back in her pocket, she proceeded to walk to the hospital.

* * *

Max was pacing again. It was what he had been doing all day, in between calls. He had just gotten off the phone with Mina and the pacing automatically started up again. 'Hmm… Mina doesn't know where Serena is… and I can't reach any of her other friends… I knew I should've asked Darien for his number…'

Somewhere in the back of his head he realized that something was off during his conversation with Mina. But what was it? Max racked his head for the answer and it came, minutes later. _Mina. _She was what was off. Through the entire conversation, she didn't crack one joke, didn't flirt with him, didn't embarrass him, didn't even sound like the Mina he knew. Instead, she sounded annoyed and tired, and Max hadn't known _tired_ was in the girl's vocabulary.

Max frowned. Something had happened. And he had a feeling this something involved Serena. What wasn't Mina telling him! His pacing quickened as frustration build up in the normally level-headed young man. 'Well, at least I know Serena's alright. If Mina does know where Serena is and what happened, she wouldn't lie to me about Serena's well-being right? …. I guess I'll just have to trust her on this one….'

* * *

"What's taking Mina so long?" Rei looked at Serena and shrugged, wondering the same thing. They were in front of the hospital. Rei leaning against the wall, arms crossed, and Serena sitting on a bench, eyes forward, concentrating on the road ahead of them.

Serena sighed and continued looking a the road, searching for any sign of a certain blonde. And to her surprise, Mina appeared not more than a block away. Serena's face brightened and she nudged Rei, making the miko look up from the ground and turn towards the road. Mina, now only a quarter of a block away from them, smiled and waved. The wave was weak. The smile was forced and fake.

"Hey, guys! You must be hungry! Here! Take some food," Mina exclaimed, having finally reached them. Serena and Rei exchanged looks. They had seen through their friend's masquerade.

"What happened?" Rei questioned, stepping away from the wall and towards Mina. Mina widened her eyes, putting on an innocent look, full of confusion.

"Huh? What do you mea-" She started.

"Cut the crap, Mina. Tell me what happened." Rei watched the blonde warily as Mina started at her words. Serena, sensing the tension in the air, stood up and walked towards them. She laid a hand on Mina's shoulder and smiled tentatively at her friend. Mina smiled back just as hesitantly. Taking a deep breath, she turned and looked Rei in the eye.

"I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but we completely forgot about Max." Both girls showed different reactions to this. Serena gasped as Rei groaned. Mina sighed heavily and slowly walked towards the benches, seemingly unable to stand any longer. Her friends' gazes followed her there. Rubbing her head, Rei followed the blonde to the benches and assumed her previous stance against the wall. Serena followed soon after and sat down next to Mina. A silence overcame the three.

"So…. What do we tell him?" Mina questioned, eyebrows raised.

"Well… I don't know…," Rei answered, staring at the floor again. "Wait… does he notice we're gone?" she suddenly stuttered, looking up with hopeful violet orbs.

Mina shook her head. "Nope… Not happening. He called me on my way here… he's been calling everyone looking for you two."

"Damn… that's just… great…" Rei sighed and resumed staring at the ground.

"Arg.. maybe we can tell him we were sleeping over at Mina's house?" Serena says uncertainly.

"Right… and how are you going to explain the bandages? Besides… I told him I haven't seen you two since yesterday evening….," Mina answered, shoulders slumped. 'I knew I shouldn't have told him I haven't seen them….'

Serena's face fell, looking away from her friends and letting her mind wander.

* * *

Darien shut the door behind him in relief. The stitching business was finally done, thank god. He couldn't stand the silence in the room any longer. Silence let his mind wander to things that he really didn't want to think about at the moment.

'I need some are!' Darien walked through the labyrinth of hallways until he finally reached the exit. Upon opening the door, he spotted three figures near some benches. He broke into a grin as he realized who they were. Smiling, he walked over slowly to the three as to not alert them. The three girls were presently all staring at the ground so they didn't notice him until he was a foot away.

"HEY!" Darien exclaimed just as he stopped next to Serena. Mina jolted upright as she looked for the source of the voice, shocked eyes landing on Darien. Serena nearly fell of the bench had Darien not steadied her. Rei merely started, looking up at him. Darien chuckled, amused at their reactions. Serena averted her eyes while the other two girls glared at the prince.

"Hmm? Something happened?" Darien cocked his head as the scouts concentrated on the floor again. It was a few minutes when Mina spoke up.

"Yea… we need a story… is your brain working?" Mina said. Darien sweat dropped at the incoherent answer.

"Um… yeah… I think my brain _works_…"

"Great! Then, you think of something to tell Max." Rei growled, her eyes saying _I dare you._ Darien backed up a little at her voice, wondering what he had done wrong. Then, as his brain registered the miko's words, he groaned. 'Oh… that… my brain is working, but not that well… Don't girls usually come up with this stuff?'

Rei, seeing Darien's uncertainty, sighed. 'This is going to be a long day….'

* * *

Luna strolled down the sidewalk with Artemis in tow. 'Sigh… two scouts out of action ad three exhausted if not too wounded, not to mention Darien… what are we going to do?'

"Luna!" Artemis nimbly pulled Luna out of the way of several running kids. "Stop spacing out! They nearly ran you over!" Artemis was breathing heavily, probably at what could've happened. His eyes searched Luna's as he tried to decipher her expressionless face. Suddenly, Luna gasped, finally snapping out of her momentary daze.

"Oh! Artemis! I… What happened?" Artemis stared in disbelief, then, sighed.

"Never mind that… you're ok… that's all that matter…" The white cat looked away, still mumbling. Luna continued to look at him, inquiringly.

"Let's go," Artemis murmured finally, still not facing Luna. Luna nodded and followed as Artemis started to walk away. The next few minutes were spent in silence, each cat lost in their own thoughts.

Suddenly, a scream pierced the still air. The chirping of the birds seemed to stop for a millisecond, then, started up again. Both cats looked up, body tense and on guard. They exchanged wide-eyed looks and simultaneously sprinted towards the place the sound was coming from. By now, there was no more chirping as it was all drowned out by the magnitude of not one, but multiple voices crying out.

The screams finally led Luna and Artemis to the park, again and they gasped at the scene that confronted them. There was blood everywhere. Trees and benches were splattered with it and Luna felt like she was going to hurl. Artemis didn't look to well either.

There were countless youmas swarming about and then there was the massive one in the middle of them all. The youma had six arms and each was rippling with muscles. It was covered in some sort of shiny armor with multiple holes on it.

There were horns on his head and two long canine fangs jutting out of its mouth. The youma was two times the height of a normal human. Presently, it was tearing humans apart mercilessly. Its minions ddin't seem to being anything, probably awaiting orders. People were running away only to be herded back by the loitering smaller youma, like cattle.

'Oh god… not again… They just got patched up and here comes another batch… It never stops does it? I'd hate to call the Senshi again, but if I don't, these poor people are all going to die….' Luna blinked away her tears and reached a conclusion. She _had_ to call the Senshi. Seconds later, she lunged away from the scene, intent on reaching the hospital in time. Artemis, without so much as blinking, was running alongside her.

**T.B.C**

Alrightly… there's chapter 13! Chapter 14 will be up sometime next month ehehe.. well R&R!

-Teenslayer


	14. Author's Note

**Author's Note:**

**  
**

Alright. I know I haven't updated in like months. Many many months. And I was just wondering how many people are still reading this story. I'm not sure if I should continue this story, especially since I don't even know where it's going. I'm just making stuff up as I go. There's just too much school crap and I don't know how often I can update if I continue this story. But, I managed to write chapter 14 a few days ago. I'm not sure if I should post it thought. All your reviews kept me going for so long and I'm very thankful. Thank you for reading. I love the reviews. They make me feel that I'm not just spending time on this for nothing. So, I would just like to have your opinion. Should I continue?

Thanks,

Teenslayer


	15. Discovering

**A/N: **Thx for the reviews. I guess I'll continue cuz u all luv me soo much grin here's the long-awaited chapter 14! Enjoy

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 14**

Max didn't know what was going on. He only remembered coming out to look for Serena and Rei and somehow ending up in the park. His head ached where he had hit it against a tree when he had tried to run away from the horrible sight in front of him. This gigantic monster was ripping people into pieces and he watched on helplessly, knowing that this was the last day he would be living. It wouldn't be long till one of the smaller youmas spotted him and offered him as sacrifice.

Max had long since stopped running. He found that it only made his fate more terrifying. People were still running, desperately trying to escape, but to no avail. Max had heard many things the past hour. People cried that they had children to take care of, parents they needed to talk to, accomplishments they needed to achieve. Children were crying for their nonpresent (is that a word?) or dead parents. But it all fell on death ears. The youmas seemed unfazed.

Max even wondered if they understood, but found out soon enough that they did when the master youma yelled out, "Sailor Senshi! Come out! Do you see what has become of your fellow humans! Come out and face me so I can tear you apart just as easily! Don't you want to save these people! Hear their pathetic cries! They look so scared, so vulnerable… Ahahaaahaha."

Max didn't know what to make of that. Who were the Sailor Senshi? Where they good guys? Bad guys? Were they even human? However, it seemed that he was one of the few that didn't know about the Senshi as everyone else around him was either pleading for the Senshi to show up or desperately trying to believe that they _would_ show up. (Remember…. Max has been living in NY most of his life and I don't think people in the states would know about Japanese heroes… right?)

Max considered asking someone who these "Senshi" were, but decided against it as he wasn't sure he could hold a conversation at the moment, with his head feeling like needles were striking it. He sighed, hoping that whoever they were would come soon.'

* * *

Max stared at the girls fighting the youmas. One minute he was about to be torn apart by the leader youma and the next minute, he was ten feet away from it, on his behind with two girls in flimsy mini-skirts in front of him, temporarily blocking his view. They were presently using what seemed to be magic attacks against the youma. 

The girl with the loose blond hair currently held a chain of some kind. What caught Max's attention was how it glowed. The chain, instead of a normal dull color, was a shade of bright yellow-gold. It was enchanting and magical. Max suddenly wasn't so sure about his belief that the supernatural and magic didn't exist.

Everyone around him seemed to have suddenly recovered their hope as they cheered the Senshi on. The girls were actually holding up pretty well, despite numerous cuts and bruises that were visible even from the distance. Behind him, Max overheard people talking about the missing Sailor Senshi. 'There's more of them? How many of them are there!'

* * *

"Arggg…" Sailor Mars growled as she spit out a mouthful of blood. "Bastards… I'll make them pay." She muttered under her breath. 

"MARS! Are you alright!" Mars looked up and found Venus regarding her with concern, while trying to hold off three youmas. She really couldn't afford to have her concentration split. Mars, realizing this, was quick to reassure her.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me." Mars managed a small smile for her friend's sake. In fact she felt anything but fine. Her stomach hurt from the punch she had received from the leader youma and her arms and legs were bleeding from the rough landing. Mars wished she could just lie down for a while, but knew that the others needed her help and she wasn't going to let any more people get hurt. She staggered to her feet and checked her surroundings. Sailor Moon was fighting the leader, with Tuxedo Mask watching her every move as he kept the other youma away from them.

"I guess I should go help Serena…" Mars immediately ran over to Sailor Moon, knocking out youmas along the way.

"Welcome back," Sailor Moon spared the Fire Senshi a glance as Mars entered the clearing. Mars gave her a smile, which immediately dissipated when she turned her attention to the leader youma. 'This is going to be a long battle…'

* * *

"YES!" Venus yelled as the leader youma finally reached its doom, courtesy of Sailor Moon's MOON GORGEOUS MEDITATION. As it gurgled in a bloody mess on the floor, Venus smirked triumphantly at the minions. It took a while before their master's demise got through their thick heads, but once it did, they scattered like a bunch of sheep with wolves on their tails. 

"Finally…" Sailor Moon muttered under her breath. The park was empty with the exception of the sailors and Tuxedo Mask, all of whom were still trying to catch their breath. It would seem that the shell-shocked victims of the massacre had all at once lit up with hope and fled once they saw their saviors. Sailor Moon sometimes wondered at people's trust in the heroines. How is it that that they held onto such unwavering believes that the senshi would be able to overcome every evil? It had been a long battle, even longer than the last one. Like the last one, trees were uprooted and everything else demolished. The place looked like a tornado had passed through. 'How long can we keep this us?' Sailor Moon sighed.

"Is everyone alright!" Tuxedo Mask asked. The girls each managed a nod. Tuxedo Mask sighed, yet again. He looked around to make sure that the coast was clear. "Alright, let's detransform (is that a word) everyone. Then, we need to have a quick meeting at Mars's." The girls nodded again, each lost in their own world. Tuxedo Mask sighed.

* * *

Max hid behind a deteriorated car, making sure to stay as still as humanly possible. He could see his saviors, but couldn't hear a thing they were saying, not that they were saying much. As far as he could see, the masked man seemed to be the only one talking and even so, his mouth was hardly moving, just enough for whatever he was saying. 

Max was curious as hell. He desperately wanted to move closer and find out what was being said, but wasn't about to give his hideout away by moving closer. He wanted to know who these people where, if they _were_ human that is. From where he crouched, Max was pretty sure they _were_ human. But he was sure to keep in mind that looks could deceive.

Suddenly, Max covered his eyes as multiple bright lights of various colors burst in front of him. The intensity of the lights rendered him temporarily blind and he sat blinking, trying to get his vision back, even as the lights disappeared, leaving the park dark again. After a while, he was finally able to see and what he saw in the barely lit park nearly gave him a heart attack. Standing in the clearing were Rei, Mina, Serena and Darien, not the four fancily dressed hero and heroines that were in their place a minute ago.

Max gasped and his eyes threatened to bulge out of their sockets at the scene. A second later, he covered his mouth as Rei turned towards him and seemed to look right at him. He sank lower to the ground and behind the car, wishing he could disappear. A minute later, Rei looked away and he breathed a sigh of relief. Then, the four were walking away.

Max slouched against the car, staring blankly at the ground. 'Oh My God.. I can't believe this. Serena and her friends are these Senshi that everyone was talking about? All those times, it's all making sense now. The sudden disappearances and the far-fetched excuses. So this is what they have been doing. Why would they lie to me? Did they not think I was trustworthy? Does my friendship mean nothing? What else are they hiding?' Max's astonishment slowly melted away into unfounded anger and he got up suddenly, determined to get some answers.

* * *

The group ended up at Rei's house, not uncommon. It just seemed to be the most suitable place, seeing as how Mina and Amy's houses were hardly places to discuss such issues. The parents would probably barge in endlessly with cookies, drinks and what-not. Sometimes Mina and Amy wondered if their parents knew what privacy meant. At least at Rei's, her grandfather would just leave them be. 

Ten minutes had passed and still, not a word had been said. All the occupants of the room were still lost in thought, all focusing on the floor or something just as insignificant.

'I'm pretty sure I saw Max earlier… I hope he got home ok…' Mina thought. She peaked up for a minute, only to see multiple blank faces and looked back down at the very interesting floor.

'There was a sound. I couldn't have imagined it, could I? Did someone see us detransform. I wonder if I should tell the others.' Rei looked around her at the rest of the group and shook her head. 'No... they all have their own problems right now. There's no point in making everyone worry. I can't say anything until I'm positive. Besides, we were all so tired. Maybe, my ears were playing tricks on me' Even as Rei thought this, she couldn't help but feel that she was merely trying to reassure herself.

"Hey. Rei are you ok?" Mina looked at her in concern. "Does your head hurt or something? You keep shaking your head…." Rei blinked, her mind working overtime.

"Um… n-no… I'm fine…." Rei looked away. 'I almost slipped there… Mina sure knows when to be perceptive. Sigh.'

Unconvinced, Mina was about to open her mouth again when the door opened. Max stood at the entrance, clothes torn and covered in dirt. He had a peculiar look in his eyes, the eyes of a mad man and Rei couldn't help but notice a dark aura around him. She narrowed her eyes and took a step forward.

"I NEED SOME EXPLANATIONS!"

Max looked at each of them silently after the outburst, and felt his anger flare even more. He barely managed to keep himself from attacking them. Somewhere in his head, he realized that his anger was unjustified and wasn't even aware that he was capable of such rage. 'Why am I so angry? What's wrong with me? It almost seems like something is controlling me.'

Alright... That's it for now… Thanks for reading! And REVIEWWWW. Till next time.

-Teenslayer


	16. Old Friends

**A/N: **Thanks for the review as always. Here's Chapter 15. Oh.. yea.. note.. with the hair n eye color references made in this chapter.. I kinda am not good w/ colors.. so I am NOT sure if they are right.. just wanted u guys to know that.. so.. yea enjoy.

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 15**

The room was tense, the air thick with apprehension. Everyone stared at Max in utter surprise. No one dared to move, for to move would break the spell and chaos would most certainly ensue. Darien had positioned himself in front of Serena, who was gaping at the enraged brunette. The other girls were more or less in defensive stances, still trying to gauge Max's expression.

"Um.. what needs to be answered?" Mina asked softly, trying to look straight at the young man's eyes, but failing to do so. Only after a minute, she looked away, unable to hold his fiery gaze. His normally warm eyes seemed to hold no recognition, only hatred. The hatred in them was so strong Mina felt her eyes prick at the sight.

Max took a step forward. Everyone else took a step back. This prompted a chuckle from him. 'They're scared of me? Hah. That's too funny.' For some reason, this trivial matter served to lessen his rage and he found that he could actually breathe normally.

"What I meant to say is… why were you keeping your identities a secret from me?" His voice was strained, but clear. The other occupants of the room gasped simultaneously, minds working overtime, desperately looking for a way out of this confrontation. As if sensing this Max narrowed his eyes. "Don't deny it."

"I...You... H-how did you find out?" Serena stuttered, having finally come out of her dazed state of mind. Eying the brunette, she could hardly reconcile him with the sweet and caring young man she knew. The transformation scared her.

Max smirked. "I saw you. In the park." The next few minutes dragged on and on, the silence almost deafening. Rei gasped as it finally struck her why she felt something was out of place, but it was too late. The time to warn her friends had come and gone. She cursed herself inwardly, hating how useless she felt.

"What? No rebuffs? Wow… And I thought this would be interesting…." Max grinned, taking in the shocked faces with what could be called sickening glee. He felt a rush of excitement flow through him at the power he possessed at the moment. He felt as if he could do anything with the power he held over them. For a long time, he just reveled in this newfound power. When someone finally spoke, he almost stumbled for a minute, as if he was being dropped from his high vantage point, his mind having been billions of light years away from the current situation.

"Max… We were only trying to protect you…" Mina said softly, as if afraid to provoke him into a rage again. She trained her eyes at a point on the wall behind Max, unable to meet his eyes. Her words met with silence. A moment later, Mina heard Max's deep intake of air and she tensed up immediately.

"Protect me?" It was almost like a question, coming from a curious young boy, earnestly seeking an answer. And thus, it did not fit Max's current facial expression. Protect him? He didn't need any protection. Why would they think that? Unbridled anger consumed him once again. He wanted to hit something, someone. He had to find a way to release his anger, for he would go mad otherwise.

BAM! The wall now had an indent in it, in the shape of a fist. The cracks were covered in red, the liquid dripping down to the floor. His hand was bleeding, but he didn't feel it. He didn't know why he had done that, what had happened, why was he bleeding. All he knew was that there was a persistent voice in his head, telling him to attack. Attack? Attack his friends?

_No… They're not friends.. not friends…_ That's right. They weren't his friends. Friends wouldn't lie to each other. Friends wouldn't treat him like this, leaving him alone to his oblivion. _Attack!_

Suddenly, Max rushed at Mina, arms extended in front of him, towards the blonde's neck. The blond gasped as she realized his intentions and made to block him, but he pushed her hands out of the way and grasped her neck, slamming her into the wall. Mina pulled at the brunette's arms, but felt as if she was trying to pry at steel. 'Wait.. This isn't right… When did he get so strong?' She felt herself start to sweat, as the lack of oxygen started to make its effect known. She didn't want to die… Not like this… Not yet.

The other occupants of the room suddenly sprang into action, having finally recovered from their shock. Serena and Rei appeared at the pair's side, each grabbing one of Max's arms and pulled. It wouldn't budge. Shock registered again, at how unyielding the brunette's arms were. By then, Darien had both arms wrapped around the other man's chest and waist, trying to pull him back. His eyes widened, amazed at his inability to move the brunette. 'What the hell?'

Mina felt like she was drowning, except without the water. She was sure this was as painful, if not more so than drowning. Any minute now she would lose consciousness and that would be it for her. She mentally thanked god for letting her meet such good friends and for her short, but happy life. Mina's hands relaxed, releasing her vice-grip on Max's own. She closed her eyes, welcoming death.

Rei felt her panic rising, noticing the increasingly purple coloring of her friend's face. However, what scared her more was the fact that Mina seemed to have stopped struggling. Serena had tears streaming down her face as she pleaded for Max to let go.

"WORLD SHAKING!" An intense light enveloped the room, coming from the doorway. The night sky was suddenly illuminated in white, making it seem like day had come early. When the blinding light had receded, the room had gone into further chaos, books and paper all over the place.

Max was on the floor, blood streaming down from the side of his head, seemingly to have knocked it against something. He was unconscious. Mina was slumped against the wall and the two other girls rushed to check if she was ok. Checking her pulse, Rei breathed a sigh of relief. The blonde was still alive. She looked up at Serena's anxious eyes and nodded. Serena nodded back. Then, seeming to have lost all strength, slumped down right next to Mina. Darien, after making sure the girls were alright, looked towards the doorway, where two figures now stood.

"Uranus…. Neptune….. Good timing…" The turquoise-haired woman gave a small smile, but her stance never faltered, never relaxing. The blonde, on the other hand, showed no signs of having even heard the comment. Her eyes flitted around the room, as if searching for something. Suddenly, the teal-colored orbs narrowed.

"Show yourself." It came out as more of a demand than a request. Seconds later, laughter filled the room, breaking the fragile calm that it contained minutes ago. A figure stepped out of the closet. The room went dead silent, the original occupants staring wide-eyed at the newcomer. No.. not a newcomer… The girls stood up simultaneously, postures rigid and ready for action despite their recent ordeal.

"How long have you been in there!" Rei demanded of the youma. 'Has it been listening in on us the whole time? Why didn't I notice anything!' The youma turned and locked its beady eyes on the Fire Senshi, smiling sinisterly, knowingly. Immediately the barely suppressed dread washed over Rei, almost suffocating her in its intensity. Rei had always been uneasy with the prospect of being watched unawares. The fact that it was a youma disgusted and terrified her all the more. She squeezed her eyes shut, willing herself not to gag.

The other occupants of the room, not including the two outer scouts, seemed to be having trouble keeping their recently ingested supper in as well. Serena focused shock eyes on Sailor Uranus and despite the fear present, Uranus could see the wonder and confusion.

"How did you know…"

"Never mind that… Now isn't the time to be shocked senseless. Transform." Uranus replied shortly. That seemed to finally bring everyone back from their own little worlds. Seconds later, the youma was graced with a multitude of transformations. It smiled.

"Hm.. you're not hiding your identities anymore?"

"What's the point? You probably know already. Besides, when this is over, your lips will be sealed," Tuxedo Mask growled.

"Oh ho ho.. Don't get overconfident. You shouldn't underestimate me…" The youma smiled again, its mouth curving upwards and mutilating its face even more so that it looked demonic. "Hm.. maybe I should introduce myself?" It let the question hang.

"No need. You'll soon be forgotten anyway," Neptune answered, a mocking smile gracing her face. The youma scowled, unhappy with the obvious lack of fear.

"As I said before.. You shouldn't underestimate me. I'm sure you'll be interested in knowing that I had something to do with the young man's actions earlier." The youma shot a glance at Max, still slumped on the floor.

"What do you mean?" Sailor Moon questioned, taking a step closer, curious. Tuxedo Mask grabbed her arm to prevent her from getting too close. Sailor Moon glared at him and shook free as the masked man let his arm drop in defeat. Mars shook her head, having witnessed their interaction.

"Huh. Caught your attention huh? Let's just say… I have certain abilities, abilities that can persuade beings to act from their dark sides. You see, all beings have a light side and a dark side. In some individuals, the dark side is dominant while in others, the light side overcomes the darkness. However, with my skills I can manipulate that balance however I want. Your friend there is an example." The youma grinned at the shocked faces and waited as the information was processed by each Senshi. Just as it was about to open its mouth, a beeping sound was heard. The youma froze and looked at the blinking red light that had appeared on its gauntlets. A hologram appeared seconds later, appearing in thin air.

_Return to base. NOW._

"What! But I have the Sailor Senshi right here." Several minutes passed in silence as the hologram youma and the one in the room stared at each other.

_Do I have to repeat myself?_

The hologram faded. The youma seemed to deflate from the question, knowing that it had lost. "I will return. Till then."

"WAIT." The youma was gone, disappearing before their very eyes. Uranus cursed.

Wow.. that took long to write… Since schools over, next update in a week or so.. However.. don't get your hopes up too high cuz I still have prep school so I'll still be busy. Heh.. Till next time!

-Teenslayer


	17. Chapter 16 Preview not named thus far

**Goodbye, My Love- Chap. 16 (Preview)**

Serena woke up suddenly in darkness, her breaths labored. She felt her eyes watering as the dream, or rather, nightmare, resurfaced in her mind. It was so vivid, so real. She could still hear the anguished cries of her friends as they crumbled to the floor one by one, drowning in their own blood. Serena shuddered and wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly cold.

After a while, her heartbeat slowed and she calmed. Looking around the room, she realized she couldn't remember what had happened. The last thing she could recall was the youma fleeing. What happened between now and then? What time was now anyway?

Suddenly the door opened, the light that entered blinding her even as she raised her arms to block it out. As her eyes became accustomed to the hallway light, she removed her arms and squinted at the doorway. _Darien. God, why him?_

"Are you alright?" Darien asked, obvious concern in his words. Serena cringed at the show of affection.

"I'm fine." She looked away, focusing on the floor instead. Anywhere but his face. A minute into the silence, she sighed. "What happened? I don't remember anything after the youma left."

A pause. Serena looked up expectantly. Darien was in shock. He hadn't expected her to talk to him, hadn't even expected her to acknowledge his presence. In fact, he was just about to leave. Quickly gathering his scrambled thoughts, he replied, "Y-You fainted." _Damn it! Why am I stuttering? Darien, you poor excuse for a man._

"Oh." She remembered now. She was feeling dizzy at the overwhelming information the youma had given and the hopelessness of it all. She started to have problems breathing. She guessed that's when she had blacked out.

"Do you want some water?" Serena sat up straight, turning so fast that she swore she heard her neck crack. Darien had somehow in the short time entered the room and was now sitting in a chair positioned right next to the bed. Her brain short-circuited in the close proximity. She could smell his aftershave. It had been awhile since she was so close to him.

_Why isn't she answering? Maybe I shouldn't have entered the room. Is she deliberately not answering me? ...Well, I wouldn't be surprised if she is._

"Serena?"

"Huh? Wha.." She asked, confused. _Did he ask me something?_

"Um.. do you want some water?" he asked again, hoping she wouldn't blank out on him again. He didn't feel like repeating it again.

"Oh...yea... sure." She took the offered cup from his hands and almost spilled the contents of the cup. Yup, it was still there. That little electrical shock that ran through her whole body with just a brush of their hands. Serena didn't know whether to be overjoyed or annoyed. Darien had felt it too. He sat staring at his hand, amazed at the power this woman held over him. Just one touch and he felt on fire.

When they looked up, it just so happened that it was at the same time and both stared openly at each other. The darkness somehow seemed to give them that extra layer of security. Slowly, Darien leaned in. Both felt their breathe hitch and heartbeat increase. Serena was a of mixed feelings. On the one hand, she was anticipating, needing, craving his lips. On the other hand, she was still angry and disgusted at herself for her weakness. It would be so easy to just give in. _No.. This isn't right. _

Sighing, she turned away at the last minute. Darien's lips met her cheek instead. Serena pushed him away gently. Darien suddenly stumbled back, falling into the chair, staring at her, wide-eyed. _Oh SHIT. Now I've done it. She's NEVER going to talk to me again. Why'd you have to do that you ass! FUCK...I really messed up this time...But I thought she wanted it..._

Serena could see the struggling emotions, now that his guard was down. The vulnerable look nearly sent her to him, holding him in her arms to comfort him. She shook her head. _No, not yet. I can't...yet..._

"D-Darien... I'm sorry.. I couldn't... Not like that... W-We need to talk," she said not looking at him until she finished. As hard as it was to deny him, deny herself this, she had to. Not until everything had been cleared. It wasn't right.

Darien sighed. "I know..."

* * *

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

**Alright people.. This is just a preview of chapter 16. I still haven't thought up the rest of the chapter, but I will soon. I've noticed that only 4 people reviewed and I am saddened. Surely there are more of you reading than 4? If so, please please REVIEW. Since I took the time to write this, I want to know that the work is appreciated. Otherwise, this is a waste of my time and effort. I know that I'm not good with updating on schedule, but I'll try harder in the future. Besides, a review takes less than a minute tops. And thanks to the people that DID review. They are highly appreciated.**

**Anyway that said, I know I haven't delved that much into the whole Serena/Darien relationship so far into the story. Maybe I'm boring you with the whole sailor business stuff? I'll try to make more situations with Serena/Darien in the future. But, the youmas still have to be taken care of right? So, anyway, thanks for reading. The rest of this chapter will be up soon, hopefully. I will be replacing chapter 16 with the full version when that time comes so don't mix it up with a new posted chapter. **


	18. Recovering

**A/N:** On second thought, I decided not to replace the old update, so here I am with _another_ chapter 16, the full version though.

**Goodbye, My Love- Chap. 16 (Full)**

Serena woke up suddenly in darkness, her breaths labored. She felt her eyes watering as the dream, or rather, nightmare, resurfaced in her mind. It was so vivid, so real. She could still hear the anguished cries of her friends as they crumbled to the floor one by one, drowning in their own blood. Serena shuddered and wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly cold.

After a while, her heartbeat slowed and she calmed. Looking around the room, she realized she couldn't remember what had happened. The last thing she could recall was the youma fleeing. What happened between now and then? What time was now anyway?

Suddenly the door opened, the light that entered blinding her even as she raised her arms to block it out. As her eyes became accustomed to the hallway light, she removed her arms and squinted at the doorway. _Darien. God, why him?_

"Are you alright?" Darien asked, obvious concern in his words. Serena cringed at the show of affection.

"I'm fine." She looked away, focusing on the floor instead. Anywhere but his face. A minute into the silence, she sighed. "What happened? I don't remember anything after the youma left."

A pause. Serena looked up expectantly. Darien was in shock. He hadn't expected her to talk to him, hadn't even expected her to acknowledge his presence. In fact, he was just about to leave. Quickly gathering his scrambled thoughts, he replied, "Y-You fainted. Y-You've been sleeping for six hours now." _Damn it! Why am I stuttering? Darien, you poor excuse for a man._

"Oh." She remembered now. She was feeling dizzy at the overwhelming information the youma had given and the hopelessness of it all. She started to have problems breathing. She guessed that's when she had blacked out.

"Do you want some water?" Serena sat up straight, turning so fast that she swore she heard her neck crack. Darien had somehow in the short time entered the room and was now sitting in a chair positioned right next to the bed. Her brain short-circuited at the close proximity. She could smell his aftershave. It had been awhile since she was so close to him.

_Why isn't she answering? Maybe I shouldn't have entered the room. Is she deliberately not answering me? …Well, I wouldn't be surprised if she is._

"Serena?"

"Huh? Wha.." She asked, confused. _Did he ask me something?_

"Um.. do you want some water?" he asked again, hoping she wouldn't blank out on him again. He didn't feel like repeating it again.

"Oh… yea… sure." She took the offered cup from his hands and almost spilled the contents of the cup. Yup, it was still there. That little electrical shock that ran through her whole body with just a brush of their hands. Serena didn't know whether to be overjoyed or annoyed. Darien had felt it too. He sat staring at his hand, amazed at the power this woman held over him. Just one touch and he felt on fire.

When they looked up, it just so happened that it was at the same time and both stared openly at each other. The darkness somehow seemed to give them that extra layer of security. Slowly, Darien leaned in. Both felt their breathe hitch and heartbeat increase. Serena was a funnel of mixed emotions. On the one hand, she was anticipating, needing, craving his lips. On the other hand, she was still angry and disgusted at herself for her weakness. It would be so easy to just give in. _No.. This isn't right. _

Sighing, she turned away at the last minute. Darien's lips met her cheek instead. Serena pushed him away gently. Darien suddenly stumbled back, falling into the chair, staring at her, wide-eyed. _Oh SHIT. Now I've done it. She's NEVER going to talk to me again. Why'd you have to do that you ass! FUCK… I really messed up this time…But I thought she wanted it…_

Serena could see the struggling emotions, now that his guard was down. The vulnerable look nearly sent her to him, holding him in her arms to comfort him. She shook her head. _No, not yet. I can't… yet…_

"D-Darien…. I'm sorry… I couldn't…. Not like that… W-We need to talk," she said not looking at him until she finished. As hard as it was to deny him, deny herself this, she had to. Not until the air had been cleared. It wasn't right.

Darien sighed. "I know…."

* * *

"So, what do we do now?" Mina asked. It was afternoon now and she had recovered from the whole ideal somewhat. Her throat was still sore and bruised, but she had refused to rest more, instead opting to join the discussion on their next move. So far, it had been mostly reviewing the information they had gathered thus far of their new enemy.

Darien sighed. "It seems they have much more abilities than your normal youma. The whole mind-controlling thing really freaked me out. They could easily manipulate us with that power….." Everyone nodded, thinking about Max. The young man himself was still asleep. The ordeal seemed to have drained him of all his energy. He hadn't woken up ever since.

It was a good thing too. Everyone was collecting themselves, preparing for his awakening. In a way, everyone was scared something like what had just happened would unfold again. Despite their doubts, they continued to persuade themselves that it was all that youma's doing. But, they couldn't block out that little part of their minds that kept whispering it wasn't all the youma's fault. However, that could wait till when he actually woke up. No use thinking about it at the moment.

"I heard about youmas like that before. I never faced them, but heard of them. Supposedly, you can block out their voices and persuasive words, thus freeing your mind from their control. As long as you focus on one thing as hard as possible, you can block out their voices. I'm not sure if it actually works, but it's the best I've got." Haruka looked up expectantly.

"Yea.. I heard of that before too," Michiru concurred.

"Well, I guess it's better than nothing. But, we don't know what other surprises these youma may be waiting to show us. Everyone has to be careful, especially now that they know our real identities. I think we should always stay in groups or at least pairs. It's less risky that way." Rei stated.

"I agree with Rei. It's too dangerous for any one of us to be alone at any time." Serena spoke up. "Also, two of us have to be at the hospital at all times since it's highly possible that the youmas know of Jupiter and Mercury's real identities." Nods all around the room. More sighs.

"Michiru and I are going for a walk," Haruka announced, standing up and walking towards the door. Michiru followed.

"Rei, lets go check up on Amy and Lita," Mina said. Rei looked at her in concern, mirrored by the other occupants of the room.

"Are you sure you're up to it?" Serena asked. Mina stared at her without replying. A second later, Serena nodded, an unspoken decision made. Rei sighed and stood up, holding her hand out for Mina. Mina smiled and took it. They were gone minutes later.

Serena stopped staring at the door her friends had just disappeared from, letting her eyes sweep through the room, landing on Darien who seemed to be in his own world. She sighed. _This is going to be a long day._

_

* * *

_

**_Earlier_**

"We have to talk…"

"I know…"

"….. W-Why did you leave?" Serena asked, fearing the answer she would receive. Maybe he really had been tired of her.

Darien was silent for a long while. He felt her eyes on him, intent, anticipating, never wavering. "To protect you," he whispered at last. He could barely contain his laughter. The answer seemed so stupid, so unwarranted, even to his own ears.

Serena laughed, a cold laugh. Why was this man still trying to rip her heart into shreds? "From what?" she muttered bitterly. "If you wanted to protect me, you wouldn't have left. How would you protect me if you weren't even with me?"

Darien glanced up. "From me. I wanted to protect you from me."

"What!" Serena exclaimed. "You're not making any sense…." Darien looked away and she growled in frustration. A while passed before any of them said anything again.

"I was having dreams… nightmares…." Darien said softly. "Every night. It was the same. A car crash. A trip gone terribly wrong. Anything imaginable. I saw you dying over and over again…. Sometimes in the most bizarre of situations... and… I couldn't do anything to stop it… And, for some reason you would always be smiling at me… You spoke to me in a few of them. You said 'you killed me, Darien, you killed me'." Darien stopped to wipe his eyes. Serena felt her heart break listening to his tale.

"I would never say that, Darien."

"I know.. I.. Just… let me finish ok?" Serena nodded. "So… after a while I started believing them. I k-killed you. I will k-kill you. You will die because of me…" Darien stopped to catch his breath. Serena laid a hand on his arm, but he barely acknowledged it. He was so deep in his memories.

"Once I had convinced myself of the doom that would await you if you stayed with me…. I decided to break up with you…. And go far away so that we wouldn't meet again. To spare both of us from the pain the encounter would bring…. I was so surprised that day I saw you in New York… I thought I had died and gone to heaven right then." Darien looked into Serena's eyes, trying to find understanding in them. The blue eyes seemed to have warmed up a little. The compassion was back.

Serena blinked. A tear fell, followed by many more. Darien's story seemed to have broken down all her defenses. She fell into his arms. They held onto each other tightly as they both broke down. Darien kept on muttering "I'm sorry" through his tears.

* * *

"Something happened."

"Hmm?" Mina stopped walking, curiosity washing over her features. Rei looked pointedly at her.

"Come on.. You can't figure it out? _You_… the Senshi of Love?" Rei asked.

"OH! You mean those two? Yea.. There seems to be less animosity."

"So you did notice. Do you think they made up?" Rei looked at her questioningly as if Mina would know everything.

"I would say…. Not completely. But, I think they're working on it. God.. I hope they get back together. They're perfect for each other. And you saw how messed up Serena was after he left. I want her to be happy again."

"Me too, Mina.. Me too.."

* * *

"What do you think?" They were leaning against the wall of a random building, looking out at the busy streets.

"This battle won't be easy," Haruka replied. Michiru nodded for her to continue. "There could be casualties." She stared at Michiru, waiting for the turquoise-haired woman to understand the hidden meanings. She watched as understanding dawned and as the other woman narrowed her eyes.

"I am NOT leaving you to fight alone. Don't even try, Haruka. Please.."

Haruka sighed. _Well, it was worth a shot._

"Where you go, I go," Michiru stated firmly.

"I understand…." She was defeated.

* * *

Serena snapped out of her thoughts suddenly. She heard something. She focused her eyes on the source of the sound, the hallway. Minutes later, Max appeared. She looked at Darien. He was asleep. She turned her eyes back to Max, cautious.

"How are you?" Serena waited for a response, tense. Somewhere in her peripheral vision, she noticed Darien waking from his short nap and sitting up. Her eyes stayed focused on Max though, memorizing each movement he made. The young man stared back.

"I'm sorry," Max said, voice low. Serena made to open her mouth, but Max beat her to it. "I remember everything. It felt like I was watching the whole thing unfold with no control over it. My body wouldn't listen to my commands…." He glanced away in shame, guilt.

Serena relaxed her muscles and breathed a sigh of relief. She glanced at Darien and saw him do the same. _Thank god he's back to normal._

**A/N:** Originally, I hadn't planned on letting Serena and Darien resolve their problems so fast. But, oh wells.. I gave them a break.. But, it's still not completely happy-go-lucky yet. There relationship will not jump back into the perfect couple. It's too soon, I think. Well, hope you enjoyed.

**kaelien**- Wow, so demanding. lol… but thanks for the encouragement and motivation

**LaMoonPrincess**- Glad that you "love it" xP

**Eternal Sailor Moon 2**- Thank you. But, I don't think I will be writing about a wedding. I'm not too good at it and it's not my style. Maybe I'll touch upon it at the very end. Also, don't think it's all good between them yet…. evil grin

**Dertupio**- So, does that mean you'll be reviewing more in the future? Please do. puppy eyes

**starangel07**- Mission: Update. Completed

**chibimoon2006**- Thank you for reading

**Polevault Princess**- I probably will finish it. I think.. Hopefully >. Thanks for the encouragement

**Brianna**- If you had read from my note, it wasn't a full chapter. That's why it was so short. And, yea.. I'm working on the serena/darien thing.

**ffgirlmoonie**- You've been such a great reviewer. Thank you for your persistency.


	19. New Findings

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 17**

"So… How does this whole thing work?" His question was met with a room of wary faces. He couldn't stop his eyes from straying to Mina's throat, now a purplish color, every once in a while. Inadvertently, the memories resurfaced and a wave of guilt washed over him, making him avert his eyes, focusing on the floor instead.

Serena cleared her throat, looking around the room. Everyone was spread out around the room. Rei and Mina, having been relieved of their hospital guarding by Haruka and Michiru, were sitting on the floor next to the sofa the rest of them were sitting on. Max was the only one on the other sofa, facing them. Somehow, this arrangement unnerved her. _It's as if we're all ganging up on him. It wasn't his fault… How did we get into this arrangement anyway?_

Serena sighed. The tension in the room was thick enough to be cut with a knife. It conjured up an image of cutting butter with a knife. Serena dismissed the thought quickly. This was no time to be thinking about such things.

"Well.. What do you want to know?" Serena murmured.. It seemed that no one else had any intention of talking, so why not? She watched Max slowly raise his head, as if afraid of what he would see. She didn't blame him.

"Um.. Ok… so you're called the Sailor Senshi. And.. you use magic powers to battle monsters…." Max trailed off.

"Yes…" Serena nodded for the young man to continue.

"H-How did you get these powers? And where did these monsters come from? Or.. were they always here?" He looked around, his face becoming animated in genuine curiosity. Serena looked around to see if anyone would answer. She sighed, seeing that everyone was lost in their own worlds. _A looong day indeed._

_

* * *

_

Serena took in a deep breath and let it out as she collapsed onto the bed. A bed never felt so appealing as now. She could just fall asleep right now. But, she couldn't. There were too many things still left to be taken care of. The talk had gone on for quite a while, mostly in silence. It was just her and Max talking. Everyone else might as well not have been here.

A knock on the door jolted her from her thoughts. She sighed and mentally prepared herself for another long confrontation.

"Come in," she yelled. The door opened moments later. It was Darien. "Oh, It's you." Darien gave her a funny look before he walked in and shut the door behind him.

"Yea.. it's _me_," he replied, putting extra emphasis on the "me". Seeing that Serena wasn't even paying attention to him, he sighed. "How are you?"

"Other than having a huge headache and feeling as if I had run a marathon, fabulous," Serena muttered dryly.

Darien chuckled as he made his way over to the bed. Sitting down on one edge of the mattress, he watched Serena for a while. Her eyes were closed and he couldn't help picturing an angel as he watched her. She looked beautiful.

"Are _we_ ok now?" His face was serious, all earlier bantering put aside. While his face showed no sign of distress, inside, his heart was hammering rapidly and his chest felt a never before experienced tightness. After a few minutes of silence, Serena opened her eyes and looked at him.

"Well, we haven't been slaughtered by the youma yet right?" She joked, trying to divert his attention to the simpler of the two ways his question could have been interpreted. Seeing no change in Darien's expression, she sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "Do you want us to be?"

She felt Darien take her hand in his. Her breathe hitched as she focused her attention on him. Darien smirked. "That got your attention huh?" Serena glared at him. He knew her too well. The smirk fell off his face and he was serious again. "More than anything," he whispered in answer to her previous question. Serena's eyes softened.

Serena sat up and moved to place her face near the crook of Darien's neck. "Me too," she whispered back. Darien shivered at the tingling sensation that now resided in his ear. His heart was still hammering away, but for a completely different reason now. Serena smiled at the effect she was having on him. She placed a light peck on Darien's cheek, then pulled back.

"But… I think we should take it slow. I'm not ready to just…" Serena trailed off. Darien nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"Yea.. I understand. It's ok. I'm fine with it." He smiled at her. Serena returned the smile. Then, she snuggled up to him with a content sigh. Darien had the widest smile on his face. He had gotten her back. They were a couple again. He was ecstatic. He felt he could do anything at the minute. But, all he wanted to do was stay here with Serena curled up in his arms forever.

* * *

Max stared hard at the ceiling, as if he wanted to commit every crack and hole to his memory. What he was really doing was going over everything Serena had told him minutes ago. It really was information overload, too much too fast.

And then, there was the whole thing he had started to think about. He still couldn't get over what he was capable of doing. It didn't help that everyone else treated him like some unstable lunatic that could strike out at them at anytime. Max sat up and growled in frustration. Staying in this room was only making him think of unpleasant things. Maybe a walk would help. He slid off the bed and headed for the door.

Outside, the minute he closed the front door behind him and turned around, he found Mina sitting on the porch steps. She turned around at the sound the door had made and froze when she saw him. Max sighed as he walked towards her, trying to dismiss the fact that she seemed to tense up even more with each step he took.

Mina's mind was chanting a never-ending mantra, which consisted of nothing more than the words "stay calm and calm down". Max was now right in front of her, towering over her, which did nothing to relieve her of her worked-up state.

Max frowned, not liking the effect he was having on the blonde. "Can we talk?" Mina nodded, but was far from letting her guard down. Max sat down next to her warily, preparing himself for a long, draining talk. He took in a deep breath. Mina opened her mouth to speak, but Max beat her to it.

"I'm sorry." Max stared at the blonde girl, willing her to understand, to accept his apology and acknowledge the pain her guard was causing him. Mina stared back at him, searching his eyes. After a while, she looked away, her shoulders slumped, as if all the fight had been sucked out of her body.

"I hope you know I would never hurt you if given the choice. I wasn't in control of my body. I know I can't undo what has already been done, and no matter how many times I apologize, the truth of the matter will remain unaltered.… I just hope we can be friends again… someday.." Max hung his head, having said all he could. It was all up to Mina now.

Several minutes passed and Mina still hadn't responded. Max was worried that she had left. But, he would have noticed if she had gotten up right? Then again, given that they had magical powers, maybe they could teleport too. For a while, Max entertained himself with the notion, lost in thought.

Suddenly, he felt fingers grip his chin, lifting it up. Shocked jet-black eyes met forgiving baby-blue ones. Mina gave a tentative smile. "W-We_ are_ friends. Aren't we?"

Max felt as if he had won the lottery. The girl was forgiving him. He couldn't believe it. All he was capable of doing was to stare at the blonde with a dumbstruck expression. Seeing this, Mina widened her smile a little. "I forgive you," she reassures him. "And.. you're not dreaming."

Max laughed at that, and soon we hear Mina echoing it, their voices singing in harmony as the sun disappeared under the horizon.

* * *

"So… What's our next move?" Rei's eyes gave each occupant of the room an once-over. They were back in the living room again. Everyone had eventually come back after a few hours of much needed rest. Looking around, one thing caught Rei's attention. Max wasn't sitting alone anymore. Mina was right next to him, which surprised the miko. However, she was happy they had worked things out and if Mina deemed it safe to be in such close proximity with the young man, Rei was willing to let go of her grudge with him.

"All we _can_ do is gather more information.. try to find a weakness," Serena stated. Rei looked at her other blonde friend and smiled. This was another thing that had caught her attention. Serena, leaning against Darien, their hands entwined. They didn't even seem to know what they were doing, acting unconsciously. Rei caught Mina's eye and they shared a knowing look.

Oblivious to the looks, Serena continued on, "It will be harder since Amy's not with us, but it's all we can do…" A frown marred her face as she thought of her two friends in the hospital. She hoped they would get better soon as their help was sorely needed and their presence deeply missed.

* * *

"VENUS CRESCENT BEAM!" A bright ray of light shot out of Venus's index finger, ripping through a row of five youmas. Sailor Venus about-faced, hair whipping against her neck and face, ready to take down another batch. She blew hair out of her eyes as she summoned up another attack.

A few feet away, Sailor Moon is trying to hold her own, but is failing due to the sheer number of youmas crowding her. Just as one particularly ugly-looking beast is ready to rip its claws through her, Tuxedo Mask rushed in, twirling his cape. The youma's claws were sliced clean off by the rapidly spinning cane and it howled in pain. Thinking this to be the perfect time to make the final hit, Tuxedo Mask thrust his cane right through the monster's heart. The youma moaned before sinking to the ground, silent.

Sailor Moon gave him a grateful look. Tuxedo Mask offered a small smile before he turned his attentions back to the monsters surrounding them. The Moon Princess did the same. _God… There's too many. We need help._

"URANUS SPACE SWORD BLASTER!" Everyone looked up to find Sailor Uranus, an arrogant smirk on her face. Tuxedo Mask couldn't help but think that the woman had once again popped in at just the right time. But, something was missing. He had barely figured out what it was when it was voiced by someone.

"Where's Neptune?" Sailor Mars yelled as she tried to keep several youma arms-length away. After the shock had worn off, the youma had immediately returned to attacking them.

"She's in the hospital, looking over the other two," Uranus replied as she jumped off the lamppost and started to engage a bunch of youma. "How long have you guys been at it?"

"Ugh… I can't even begin to remember. It feels like forever." Sailor Moon pushed a youma off her back and proceeded to use her staff to beat the living daylights out of it. Uranus chuckled at the response, but said no more.

* * *

Sailor Mars placed her foot on the youma's neck. It squirmed underneath her as it tried desperately to release its neck. Its arms held no power however, and it could do nothing as it felt more and more drowsy. It closed its eyes, ready for death. Suddenly, it could breathe and for a fleeting second, it rejoiced, before hands grabbed it by the shoulders roughly, hauled it up and pushed it against the wall.

It cracked open its eyes and found a different face staring at him. It was no longer the fiery raven-haired sailor. This was a man, with a white mask and black hat. The youma wondered what the man wanted, since it was obvious he hadn't rescued it for the sake of rescuing it. As if the man had read its mind, he started to speak.

"Where is your headquarters?" Tuxedo Mask demanded. The youma looked back at him blankly, not revealing anything. Tuxedo Mask shook the youma roughly. "Tell me!" He waited a minute, but no answer came. Suddenly, he felt another presence behind him. Tuxedo Mask turned around and found Mars gesturing for him to let go. He gave Mars a questioning look before releasing the youma. Mars immediately occupied his previous position.

"Listen to me. Your people hurt two of my good friends.. and I will NOT forgive that. Do you understand? So, you better tell me where your base is or you will suffer a fate worse than death. Understood!" Mars growled harshly. The youma closed its eyes, fueling Mars's rage. She had had it with this piece of shit. She brought up one of her hands and a fireball started to grow within her palm. In one quick motion, she threw the burning inferno at the youma's shoulder and proceeded to press on it. The youma howled with anguish.

Sailor Moon looked away from her best friend's viscous display of power, not able to reconcile it with the caring person she knew. Venus felt sick at the sight, but acknowledged the need for such an action. Tuxedo Mask looked on with a blank expression, seemingly indifferent. Inside, his stomach was churning. Uranus stared, taken off guard at the Fire Senshi's brutal actions.

"Will you tell me now?" Mars pressed harder on the burnt flesh, while trying to control her upset stomach. The youma whimpered, but refused to open its mouth otherwise. Seeing this, Mars made another fireball, this time pressing it into the skin covering its heart. The youma screamed as it felt the skin burn away. It wondered how much longer until the heat reached his heart. "Do you want another one!" Mars yelled, eyes hard and cold. The youma opened its eyes just as Mars was forming another fireball.

"Stop," it croaked. "I'll tell you…" The fireball dissipated and Mars looked at the youma expectantly. "I-It's underground.. there's a tunnel that leads to it.. the entrance to the tunnel is at a bar… it's at the outskirts of this town.. called.. 'Hole in the Wall'…" Mars stared at it, trying to discern if the youma was lying.

"I swear," it shrieked, having caught on to Mars's train of thought. Mars relaxed her hold on the youma finally. Her other hand, meanwhile was forming a fireball. The youma was relieved at the look the woman was giving it. She believed it. Then, it saw the fireball.

"No.. No.. NO! I told you! Don't kill me! P-Please.. don't kill me…" It sobbed as it realized that no matter what it said, the raven-haired woman wouldn't let it live. With one last fireball aimed at its heart, Mars ended its life. Mars sighed as the monster crumpled to her feet. She leaned against the wall, no longer able to support her body weight. She was disgusted with herself, with her actions. She felt dirty all of a sudden and craved a long shower to rinse away all the filth.

"Why? Why Rei? Why did you kill it? It told you the hideout. You could have just let it go!" Sailor Moon exclaimed, her cheeks wet from tears. She hadn't wanted to see this side of her friend. Mars looked at the princess blankly for a minute. Then, her face hardened.

"It was a monster. It's not like we haven't killed any of them before." Mars looked away. She knew what Sailor Moon had meant. It wasn't the fact that she had killed it. It was the cruelty with which she had killed it that unnerved Sailor Moon. Now was not the time for that however. The world was at sake and if she had to resort to such means to save it, then so be it.

"Let's untransform and go home. We'll need to rest. Tomorrow, we go to their hideout." That said, Mars started to walk away from the rest of the group, leaving them in the dead silence.

**A/N: Next chapter in two weeks? I think? REVIEW PEOPLE!**


	20. Enemy Base

**Goodbye, My Love – Chapter 18**

"This is it…" Tuxedo Mask took stock of the scouts. They all looked a little worse for wear, owing to the inconsistency of the tunnel, which twisted and narrowed, and the booby traps hidden all over the place. He imagined he didn't look much better.

"Yea…" Sailor Moon breathed, staring at the ominous door in front of her with foreboding. They had followed the youma's words and trekked through the seemingly endless tunnel. When the tunnel finally ended, they saw nothing, but dirt. They thought it was a dead-end.

Mars was just about to curse the dead youma to hell, when Tuxedo Mask happened to notice a protruding piece of rock in a dark corner. Before anyone could stop her, Sailor Venus had taken it upon herself to pull on said rock. All of a sudden, the rock started to glow. Moments later, the door appeared form thin air, engraining itself into the dirt wall.

Venus let out a long breath. "Why didn't we ask Michiru and Haruka to come?"

"Because we weren't sure if the youma had been lying. And, we have to be prepared in the event that they decide to attack the hospital. I can pretty much assume that they know all our identities by now.." Mars stared at Venus, as if daring her to put up a challenge.

Venus sighed and looked away from Mars's fierce gaze. Something had changed in her friend and she didn't like it. However, she assumed that Mars was right in assuming such an attitude. After all, desperate times call for desperate measures. Still, she wished that at least one of outer sailors were here.

Mars sighed. She knew she was scaring her friends, but didn't know how else to handle the situation. Looking back up at the door, she prepared herself for the worse. "Let's go." It wasn't a question, more so a command. While she hadn't meant for it to come out that way, she wasn't about to give much thought to it at the moment.

Venus reached for the knob on the door, slowly twisting it and pushing tentatively on the rock door. Everyone held their breaths as the door opened to reveal a dark passage. The darkness felt just as menacing as the door and Venus backed up a little.

"Sailor Mars," Tuxedo Mask whispered. Mars nodded and stepped forward. With a snap of her fingers, a flame appeared in her palm. The passage was narrow, allowing only one person through at a time. The Fire Senshi led the way with the flickering ball of flame, which did little more than give them a glimpse of things within ten feet of them. Venus followed, then Sailor Moon, with Tuxedo Mask sticking close to her at the end of the four-person line.

A while later, they encountered a break in the passage. There were two routes they could take. After a minute of pondering, Mars headed to the one on the left. Trusting her instincts, the rest of the group followed.

* * *

"I see something ahead… It looks like a star…" As Sailor Mars got closer to it, she could tell that it was, indeed, a star. A glowing blue star, which radiated evil energy. The raven-haired girl frowned, brows furrowed in thought, and she assumed a more cautious stance. Approaching slowly, she motioned for the others to follow her example. 

"What's wrong?" Venus tapped the Fire Senshi on the shoulder. Mars turned around, jumping slightly, and glared at her. The blonde grinned sheepishly. "Sorry."

Sailor Mars sighed. "There's something weird about that star. I don't know what …"

"It looks like a switch." Sailor Moon squeezed through the limited space, moving past the other two girls. "Let's see.." Just as she activated the switch, Sailor Mars rushed forward, gripping the former's arm and holding it in place firmly. Sailor Moon winced, trying to free her arm from the painful grasp. "Let go, Rei.. It hurts."

As if burnt, the Fire Senshi released her arm and stared at her in shock. "I-I'm sorry," Mars stuttered. "I.. you shouldn't have done that.." Sailor Mars looked away, leaving the blonde to stare at her in bewilderment. "It could have been a trap." Understanding dawned on Sailor Moon's face, and she smiled in gratitude, though Mars wouldn't look at her.

"So… about that door… maybe we should head through it some time today…" Venus said, trying to break the tension and divert everyone's attention to the now opened doorway. Tuxedo Mask nodded stiffly and walked over to Sailor Moon. He took her by the arm and proceeded to the doorway, keeping her in front of him, as if Mars was a rabid animal that would attack his love at any minute.

Sailor Mars sighed as she felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking up, she managed to give Venus a small smile, to relay that she was all right, even though it wasn't. Venus nodded and started to walk. Mars followed.

* * *

"There's three of them. See them? One of them patrols the stairs there. He never looks this way, so no worries about him. Well.. unless we make a sound to alert him. The other two will be a problem." Tuxedo Mask whispered. They were all gathered at the door, peaking through the crack. It looked like the door led them out to the middle of a hallway. There were two guards in the hallway. Both of them stopped just short of the door they were behind and turned around, patrolling down the other way. 

"If we can sneak up on them one by one and take them out, it'll it be perfect," Mars stated, looking at Tuxedo Mask expectantly. The prince just stared at her for a minute, before replying.

"I think that's exactly what we should do." He looked at the Senshi of Love. "Sailor Venus, you take out the one patrolling the north side. I'll take care of the other."

"No. I'll do it. Venus should stay here with Sailor Moon." Sailor Mars stared at him defiantly. Several minutes passed before Tuxedo Mask nodded.

"Don't alert the third guard," he warned. Mars just grinned, before slipping through the crack in the door. Tuxedo Mask sighed before following suit.

"So… that was interesting…" Venus stated sarcastically. Sailor Moon sighed.

"I don't know.. He's gotten more protective. I know Rei didn't mean anything by it. She was just looking out for me…"

"By _he_, you mean Darien right?" The moon princess gave her a look. "Ok.. yea.. Darien. Never mind… I'm not stupid!" The other blonde just continued to give her a disbelieving look. Venus was about to open her mouth to defend herself again when she noticed Sailor Moon pale noticeably.

"Behind you…" Sailor Moon whispered, her voice hushed . Venus turned around quickly and screamed. She would have alerted the whole base of their presence if it weren't for the hand that rushed to cover her mouth. Behind her, she heard a struggle and inwardly prayed Sailor Moon was alright. A second later, the figure lit a fire, revealing its face as it released the Love Senshi's mouth. Venus breathed a sigh of relieve as she realized it was only Sailor Mars. She turned around to find Tuxedo Mask holding Sailor Moon, who seemed to have just stopped struggling.

"Jeez.. You guys scared us. Why are you wearing the enemies' uniform anyway?"

"To blend in.. Duh.." Mars looked at Venus pointedly. For the second time in less than five minutes, Venus felt like hitting herself on the head for her stupidity. "Anyway.. here you go." Mars threw a uniform at each of the two bedraggled sailors. "Put them on. We need to move fast. Before they discover what happened to the guards."

"Sorry, did I scare you?" Tuxedo Mask whispered, still holding onto Sailor Moon. The latter looked up at him and smiled

"Yea… you did… but, I'm alright now. You don't know how relieved I was when I realized it was you…" Sailor Moon shot him a mock glare. "Don't do it again." Tuxedo Mask grinned sheepishly.

"Hey! You two! Save it for later!" Venus winked, letting them know that she was only teasing. Sailor Moon blushed and moved away to put on her stolen uniform. The prince chuckled. _She looks so cute when she gets all flustered._

_

* * *

_

Sound of an alarm going off

They figures froze in mid-step as formerly unseen lights ignited and brightened the passageway.

"What's going on?" Sailor Moon looked around her with widened eyes.

"Looks like they found the bodies…"

As if to confirm Mars's surmise, a hidden loudspeaker started blaring.

_THREE GUARDS HAVE BEEN FOUND UNCONSCIOUS. OUR BASE HAS BEEN INFILTRATED. ALL SOLDIERS REPORT TO THE MASTER'S ROOM NOW. REPEAT. ALL SOLDIERS REPORT TO THE MASTER'S ROOM._

"That's it! We'll follow them. They'll lead us straight to the master. Just… try to make yourself as inconspicuous as possible. Despite our attire, we still have many noticeable differences from the enemy." Tuxedo Mask stopped to observe everyone's evaluation of his plan. To his satisfaction, everyone gave him a thumbs up.

* * *

Sailor Moon kept her head low. All around her, youma were standing stock-still, at attention to whatever the master was saying. Sailor Moon could care less. All she wanted was to complete this episode of her 'job' and get out of here. She was just waiting for Tuxedo Mask to follow up on his plan to save their asses. 

The door had shut the minute the last youma had entered the room, so a retreat was out of question. But, there were so many youma in the room. If they really decided to make a direct confrontation now, what were the chances that they would win? The blonde wasn't implying that it was impossible, having been the witness to countless miracles.

However, if they fought now, there would hardly be enough space between any of them and a youma to avoid an attack. One wrong move could end with a sharp claw digging into her flesh.

Before Sailor Moon had the chance to bombard herself with more thoughts, she felt grimy arms grab her shoulders and arms. In shock, she looked up and towards her friends to see that they were in the same situation. _Shittt… They found out.._

On impulse, she looked up at the master, who gave her an impossibly evil smile. Its mouth opened widely to reveal yellow, rotting teeth. The smile didn't reach its eyes though. The beady orbs were hollow and empty. Its body was green and scaly. It reminded Sailor Moon of a crocodile in a way. A huge crocodile.

As Sailor Moon continued to stare hatefully at the monster, it started to talk, giving one of those boring, boss speeches. Sailor Moon had to stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"So… looks like I've found some rats here…" It grinned. "You're the Sailor Senshi huh? I've heard much about you..." The youma stopped and got up from its chair, walking leisurely down the steps to stand before them. "What did you hope to accomplish? Surprise attack? All-out war?"

"What if we were?" Venus asked cautiously.

"To tell you the truth… I don't feel up to a fight today."

"What, are you scared?" Mars glared at it defiantly.

"Hah!" The youma laughed, as if deeply amused. "Of you! Do you not see how many of us there are around you and how many of your kind there is? Don't mock me… if you know what's good for you…" It glanced at each of them before continuing.

"Hm.. Maybe… we can make a trade…"

"You don't have anything we want," Mars growled.

"Oh? We'll see.." The master motioned for a minion, who left the room, through a concealed door, in a hurry. Several minutes later, he returned, dragging a young man behind him. The scouts looked on curiously. Right before they reached the scouts, the pair stopped walking. The man lifted his head. A collective gasp rang out.

"MAX! Why are _you_ here?" Venus stared in shock, as did everyone else.

"I'm sorry.. I followed you guys… I wanted to help…" He dropped his head in shame. "but all I ended up doing is causing you guys more trouble… sorry….." Sailor Venus brought her hand to her forehead, trying to fend off the imminent headache.

"So… do we have a deal?" The master's voice brought everyone back to the matter at hand.

"What deal? We haven't set any premises yet," Tuxedo Mask called out. The master narrowed its eyes.

"What don't you understand? I'm willing to give you back your…" The youma shot a look at Max. "_friend_," it spit out, as if disgusted by the word. ".. If you turn around and get out of here right now."

"How do we know you're not bluffing?" The youma turned its attention toward the voice. "How do we know if one of your minions decides to attack us when we're off guard?" Venus continued, blue eyes darkening in foreboding.

"My people will not harm you if I order it. They wouldn't dare defy me." The youma boasted, drowning in its arrogance. "If I say you are safe… you _are_." It took a long look at Venus "So?"

"No." The master spun his head around in shock at the Fire Senshi, as if he would faint at the audacity of the statement. "We didn't come here to chicken out and run," Mars continued confidently. "We came to settle this. Once and for all."

The youma grinned. "I see. So be it." The next few seconds were chaos as youma charged at them from every direction.

**A/N: Agghh… Wanted to write more, but nothing is coming to the brain at the minute.. And it's been two weeks.. so I decided Whatever I'll just give you what I got so far. Next chapter will be up soon, hopefully. READ AND REVIEW!**


	21. Awakening

**Goodbye, My Love – Chapter 19**

"Watch out!" Sailor Moon turned around just in time to block a set of claws with her scepter. Adrenaline pumped through her. Blood and sweat dripped off of her as she tried to catch her breath. That was a close one. For the first time since the battle started, she allowed herself to just stop hacking away at bodies for a moment. Her heart was still beating out of control as she turned to acknowledge the source of the spoken warning. Seeing Sailor Venus, she shot her a grateful look when their gazes locked. Despite her predicament, Venus gave her a smile, before she returned to strangling her youma. Heaving a sigh, the moon princess turned to look for some more youma to bash. Of course, the effort wasn't necessary since several were headed her way, probably having decided she'd had enough rest.

Not far away, Tuxedo Mask was trying to hold three youma at bay. However, neither his heart nor spirit was in the fight. He kept his eyes trained on Sailor Moon even as he was slammed into the wall. He knew it wasn't a good idea to focus on Sailor Moon instead of his own fight, but he just couldn't let anything happen to her.

* * *

"Shit…" Max gritted his teeth as a thin line of blood formed on his right arm, stretching from his elbow to his wrist. He watched as the blood concentrated and started to streak down his arm and onto his clenched fist, not even seeing the youma headed his way. For a minute, he just stared at it in astonishment. He had never seen so much blood before. The most he had ever done was cut himself with a kitchen knife. Suddenly, he felt lightheaded as the reality of the situation presented itself to him.

The young man was soon brought out of his reverie, when gloved hands covered his arm. A second later, they were replaced with a red piece of fabric. Max looked up, relieved when he saw Venus. A few feet away lay the talon-covered youma, slayed. The red ribbon in the blonde's head was gone. Instinctively, Max glanced down at his now bound arm. Well, that answered one question. Looking back up, he noticed Venus was looking at him worriedly. Despite his newly-found fear, Max gave what he hoped was a convincing smile.

"I'm okay.." He glanced at the dead youma, reverting his gaze quickly when he realized it was starting to decompose into a green liquid. Yup, Venus's face was definitely easier on the eyes. "Thanks.. for that.." Venus nodded in acknowledgement.

"No problem." She scrutinized him. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yup. Perfectly fine." Max spun around, blocking a fist with his injured arm and gasped in pain. Wincing, he followed up with a round-house kick and an uppercut. Thank god for the few months in which he had felt the need to learn a little martial art. Behind him, he heard Venus yell an attack. Moments later, a yellow beam shot past him, right through the youma's head. It missed his head by a mere millimeter. Max turned around to see an apologetic look on Venus's face.

"Whoa."

"Yeah.. sorry.. I should have warned you.." Venus said sheepishly. Max sighed and relaxed his pose. The consistent waves of pain arcing across his arm had been pushed to the back of his head during the fight, but now they were coming back two-fold. A particularly sharp wave brought his left hand to cover the now blood-stained fabric. Perspiration accumulated on his forehead as he tried to block the pain. A tap on his shoulder brought him back to attention. Sailor Venus stood there, tears in her eyes.

"D-Don't worry about me. I'll be fine.." Max tried to smile, but it came out as more of a grimace. He brought a hand up and wiped away the tears on her cheeks. "Don't cry." He looked at her pleadingly, unable to bear witness to her tears.

"But.. you're hurting. That's worse than any injury to me.." Venus muttered, eyes downcast. She couldn't believe she was saying this, never mind that she was in the middle of a battle. She sneaked a look at the young man.

Max stared at the blonde wide-eyed. _Did I just hear what I think I heard? _Venus was looking at him now. _Say something! What's wrong with you?! SAY SOMETHING!!_

"What are you two doing?!! Stop standing there! We could use some help!" Mars yelled. In a flash, Venus was gone, leaving Max to stare at where the blonde beauty had been but minutes before and a headache that held an intensity equal to the pain in his arm.

* * *

"We can't beat them! There's too many!" Tuxedo Mask yelled. He twisted around and blocked an armored fist.

"I can see that!" Sailor Mars shot back. She dodged a claw that would have swiped her head clean off.

"What do we do?!" Sailor Moon questioned, panic rising. The youma were coming in waves and it didn't seem as if they were going to stop anytime soon. No one answered her question. Everyone was too busy trying to keep the swarming monsters away, hoping for a moment's rest.

* * *

A blonde haired woman stood in front of the soda machine, staring at it without really seeing it. After an eternity, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a bill. Still with a blank, unseeing expression, she slid the bill into the slot mechanically. Bending down slightly, she recovered the drink she had just purchased. Then, she repeated the steps. She sighed. With the drinks in hand, she started to walk away from the soda machine, walking down the narrow, brightly-lit hallway. In the middle of the hallway, she suddenly stumbled and wavered. The drinks fell to the floor, forgotten. The blonde reach out and held onto the nearby windowsill for dear life as an overpowering sensation overcame her. She shivered as the hallway suddenly turned chilly. She squeezed her eyes shut as the vision overwhelmed her.

A long time passed before the blonde opened her eyes again. "They're in trouble."

"Who?" The blonde looked up suddenly and met mysterious blue-green eyes.

"Haruka?" Haruka broke eye contact, bending down to pick up the fallen drinks. She straightened up.

"The other sailors. I-I saw them. I don't know how, but… I did.. They were fighting… There was too much youma. They can't win the battle." Haruka looked deep into her partner's eyes. "We have to help them, Michiru." Confused blue-green eyes regarded her for a second. Michiru sighed, looking away.

"We don't even know where they are," she stated matter-of-factly as she took one of the drinks from Haruka and led her into the hospital room, closing the door behind them. Once inside, she uncapped the bottled water and took a few desperate gulps, as if to drown the worry she felt. She focused her attention back on Haruka, who seemed to be in deep contemplation. Michiru waited.

"Oh no…" It was barely a ghost of a whisper, but Michiru heard it. Hearing those two words from Haruka couldn't be a good thing.

"What? Don't scare me like that. What is it?" Haruka looked up slowly and their gazes locked. All of a sudden, Michiru understood. "Oh no.. Why didn't they tell us?" Haruka sighed.

"I can think of two reasons…" She turned away from Michiru, towards the two wounded Sailors. Teal-colored eyes blinked. _Am I seeing things?_ She looked back at Michiru, who was staring at the wall, completely oblivious. The Sailor of wind cleared her throat lightly. "Lita?" She said hesitantly. The grin that spread over the newly-awoken girl was definitely real. She was not seeing things. Behind her, Michiru started at the sight.

"I feel like I was run over by a truck…" Lita groaned, breaking the ice in the room. Michiru and Haruka laughed, the mood suddenly lightening up. If Lita had awoken, Amy was likely to be ok soon too. Things were looking up.

* * *

"Damn it!" Mars slammed a fist into the wall she was leaning on; the wall of fully magic-proof jail cell. Mars pulled her bloodied hand away from the wall, staring at the place she had hit with little surprise. _How predictable.. Not even a scratch._ She looked away.

"Stop hurting yourself," Sailor Venus muttered from the floor where she was sitting with the rest of the group. "It won't get us out of here.. Especially not in the condition we're in right now.." Nods of agreement. Venus looked around. _God.. This is bad.. I can barely walk with my limp. _She turned to where Serena was sitting, back to the wall, with Darien's head in her lap. Tears kept streaming down her cheeks as Darien muttered in deliria. _Darien might as well bleed to death. _

Venus glanced at Max, who was staring at the wall in front of him blankly. His arm bled profusely. Venus sighed, silently praying that they would get out of this mess alive.

* * *

"So, what have I missed out on?" Lita asked. They were sitting in the café across from the hospital. They had wanted the newly-awaken sailor to stay in bed a while longer, as she had only just woken up a day ago, but Lita wouldn't hear of it. She claimed that she would go crazy if she stayed in the hospital any longer. After much begging and pleading on Lita's part, the two outer scouts relented, only agreeing to take her as far as the café across the street. Lita had rolled her eyes, but decided it was better than nothing.

"Not much…" Haruka said, looking away.

"Tell me you're joking.." She glanced at Michiru. "I've been out for two weeks now and last time I checked youma were swarming everywhere." She waited. Lita sighed. "You know.. the fact that you aren't saying anything pretty much says it all.. What happened? Where are the others?" No one spoke. "Ok.. enough.. will someone PLEASE say SOMETHING."

"We think the enemy's got them." Michiru finally replied. She glanced up to see how Lita would take this news and was surprised to see how calm and composed she was.

Lita released a heavy sigh. "I knew it would be something like that…" She stopped. "Wait.. you _think_?" Michiru looked over at Haruka, Lita following her gaze. Haruka looked up when she felt the eyes on her. Sitting up straighter, she began to explain her vision to the Sailor of thunder.

"So you know where this place is…" Haruka nodded. "Then what the problem? Why can't we just bust in and get them?"

"Because.. Like I said already… there are at least fifty of the enemy in there, against three of us. What are the odds of us winning?" Haruka explained, annoyed at Lita's less than intelligent plan. "We need to plan this out. We can't just bust in there 'cuz we won't be able to overcome them.. But. We can sneak in and find a way to get them out."

"That's why Haruka is going to go to the base tomorrow to find out more about the place," Michiru added. Lita looked at her, sensing the worry coming off her in waves.

"No, I'll go."

SLAM

Lita stared, wide-eyed at Haruka. The blonde still had her palm on the table. Haruka looked up at Lita, the look in her eyes scaring the other girl.

"No, you will _not_ go," Haruka grit out. "We are not losing another team member to them. Do you understand?" Getting over her fear, Lita opened her mouth to speak, but Haruka beat her to it. "No. You just came out of a coma damnit! _I _will go," she said with an air of finality. Lita sighed and nodded in defeat.

Michiru looked around and sighed, noticing the attention they had gathered. At the same time, she saw a waitress walking towards their table. 'Well.. looks like it's time to leave…'

"I'm sorry. I'm gonna have to ask you to leave. You are causing too much of a commotion…" The waitress said sternly. Haruka glared at her and Lita just acted as if she didn't hear. Michiru smiled at the waitress sweetly.

"Yea. Thank you. We'll be leaving soon. Sorry for the trouble," she replied sheepishly. The waitress nodded and walked away briskly. Michiru looked down at Haruka, sighed, then tugged on her arm. Haruka stood up solemnly. Lita followed. Michiru took Haruka's hand and led her out of the café, Lita following some distance behind them.

* * *

"She'll be fine," Michiru said, her voice wavering. Lita shook herself out of her daze and realized Haruka was no longer in sight. She turned to the woman standing next to her. Lita could tell Michiru was worried, very worried. She could tell by how the other woman held onto the lamp post, her hand turning white with the amount of pressure she was enacting on the lamp post. Lita wasn't blind. She knew there was something more than friendship between the two outers and she now saw it even more clearly.

Lita placed a hand on Michiru's shoulder and squeezed, trying to reassure her. When the other Senshi looked up, Lita gave her a smile. Michiru smiled back, but the worry was still there. Both looked back down the road the Wind Senshi had disappeared to.

"You know she was only looking out for you right?" Michiru said softly. Lita turned to look at her for a second, before turning back to the dark road, barely distinguishable from the blackness of the night.

"Yea.. I know.. I just wish she would've at least let me go with her…" Lita sighed.

"You might have gotten in her way and her attention would be split if you were there."

"I know.." A pause. "That's why you decided to not go with her huh?"

"Yea.."

**Ok.. So not much Darien/Serena action. But I'll see if I can write some for the next chapter… Now that school has started again, I won't be able to update much.. I'll still try to finish this story.. (Can't believe it's been years since I started) Thanks for sticking with me..**


	22. Rescue Attempt

**Goodbye, My Love- Chapter 20**

Sailor Uranus crept along the side of the stacks of boxes. The scene in front of her bewildered her. The youma were unpacking what seemed to be toys. Uranus cocked her head in confusion. What the hell were they planning on doing with toys?! Before she could give it more thought, she caught a glimpse of a youma disappearing through what had previously been a nonexistent door. In a blink of an eye, the youma was gone as was any trace of the door.

_Interesting.._ Uranus looked around her for something to throw. She found a rock. _Good enough._ Taking aim at an oil lamp quite a distance away, she threw the rock. The lamp shattered from the impact and the youma rushed towards the sound. Wasting no time, Uranus leapt the distance between her and the door. At first she was afraid she wouldn't be able to figure out how to open the door in time and the youma would return only to end her mission. However, has she neared the door, she found there had been no reason to worry. The door automatically opened as long as you knew where it was. The Wind Senshi grinned as she passed through the door. _Smart…_

* * *

"I think I heard something."

"You were imagining it.." Venus glared at the Fire Senshi.

"I'm serious." Sailor Mars shrugged, looked away, opting to resume leaning on the wall. The Senshi of Love sighed as her eyes swept the cell, falling across the bodies of her friends, fast asleep on the floor. They had decided that at any given time, two of them had to keep watch while the others slept. _And why did I have to be stuck with grumpy ol' Rei.._

Despite Mars' earlier dismissal of her words, Venus kept her ears tuned for further sounds. No sound was forthcoming however. Maybe she really had been imagined things. Venus rubbed the bridge of her nose. To say she was annoyed would be an understatement.

* * *

_Jeez.. what is it with monsters and long, dark passageways… I don't think I've seen anything but the walls around me for hours.. can they actually see anything in this unlit place? That wouldn't be a good thing seeing as how I am nearly blind right now…_

Sailor Uranus groped for a switch or a latch somewhere along the walls, anything that would end the walk down the passageway of darkness. She inwardly cursed at herself for choosing this route. _Should have stuck to the bright sections.. At least I would still be able to see two feet in front of me.. _

Instead she had chosen to walk down this endless passageway. The only thing she was sure of was that the passageway was extremely narrow. In fact, it wasn't much wider than she was. She only had to extend her arms halfway to reach both sides of the passageway. As for height, she wasn't sure of.

The Sailor of Wind groaned. All she felt was smooth earth. No latch to be found anywhere. This was not working. She stopped walking. _Time to think… Why would they have this passageway.. what would be the purpose of it? Where would this lead?... _Uranus sighed as the questions piled up without forthcoming answers.

* * *

"Rei.." Sailor Venus hissed. "Wake up!" She grabbed the miko by her shoulders and proceeded to shake her. The blonde waited a while for Sailor Mars to finally come to. Confusion clouded the lavender orbs as the miko stared back into her eyes.

"What happened?" Mars mumbled as she straightened from the slouched position she had been sitting against the wall. She looked around to find the other occupants of the room still sleeping. Venus let go of the raven-haired girl. Kneeling next to her, the blonde smirked.

"You feel asleep. Standing." Venus grinned even more at the widening of Mars' eyes. She shouldn't be taking such delight in this at a time like this, but she couldn't help it. It was just too amusing to just let pass. "One minute you were standing there. The next, you just started sliding to the floor. Thank god there was the wall." Venus swept her hand across her forehead in a show of relief, all the while fighting back her laughter as Mars opened and closed her mouth repeatedly.

"I-I.." The miko closed her mouth and blushed in embarrassment. She looked away from Venus' gleeful expression. "Shut up." Venus smiled widely, her mood having improved greatly. Who knew teasing the Senshi of Fire could be that fun.

Before she could ponder any more on her thought however, there was a bang. This time, Venus _knew_ she wasn't imagining it. She glanced at Mars who nodded, her face now the epitome of seriousness. She had heard it too. They braced themselves for the need to spring into action at any minute, both sets of eyes scouring the darkness beyond the cell's bars.

* * *

She found a door. Thank the gods. She thought she was going to go crazy. The only problem was the door wouldn't open. Gritting her teeth, she had started slamming her shoulder into the door over and over again, hoping it would somehow do the trick. Was she making too much noise? Would the youma hear her? The thought had presented itself earlier, but Uranus was far past worrying about that. What she _was_ worried about was the state of her emotional well-being if she had to stay in the dark passageway for another minute. She would surely lose her mind, that was for sure.

Sailor Uranus suddenly lost her balance and toppled over as the door finally gave way. With much disdain, she realized that she was still shrouded in darkness. She growled in frustration as she picked herself up off of the ground. Then, almost involuntarily, she spun around and reached out her hand to pull on the latch that she didn't even know existed. She was rewarded with a barely visible source of light a ways down the tunnel, one that she knew hadn't been there earlier. Grinning widely, the blonde walked towards the light with some more of a bounce in her steps.

* * *

The lights were on. It had taken a few seconds for Venus and Mars to get used to the intensity of the light. At first, the brightness had blinded them, rendering them both defenseless. When they had finally recovered their senses, they realized that the rest of the cell's occupants were slowly coming to as well, all but Darien who was still out cold. Covering their eyes as they fought to get acquainted with the new lighting, they had collectively rested their questioning eyes on the two standing guard.

"Don't look at us. We didn't do anything." Sailor Mars explained, annoyed by the fact that she had to answer to anything. Venus nodded at her side.

Pitter patter. Footsteps.

Every one turned their head towards the bars of their cell, their gazes traveling far beyond the metal that prevented their escape. Mars was the first to notice an outline of a body running towards them. It was long before the others took note of what she saw as well.

They could tell it was human now. A female. Tall. Blonde hair. A familiar uniform.

"Uranus!" Sailor Moon called out, heedless of the glares she received from the other two Senshi. The figure smirked as she neared the bars separating them.

"Watch out!" Venus warned just as the taller blonde was about to reach out for the bars. The Senshi of Wind froze on the spot.

"What's wrong?"

"You can't touch the bars. They can electrocute you." Mars explained calmly. "You see that machine there?" Uranus turned her head towards the direction Mars had nodded at.

"Yea."

"I think.. you can disable it with that. I'm not sure how though. You're gonna have to figure that out yourself.."

"Hm.." Uranus looked at the machine thoughtfully for a minute. "You sure I can't just bust the bars?" She asked, turning back around. Mars rolled her eyes.

"Don't you think we would have escaped by now if that worked?" She sighed. "They're magic proof."

"Oh.." Sailor Uranus sighed. With a shake of her head, she walked over to the machine. She could do this right? She had been a mechanic before…

* * *

"Do you think she's alright?"

"I hope so.." Michiru sighed.

"If she doesn't get back by tomorrow afternoon, we're going in to get them." Michiru looked up, surprised. When had Lita decided on that? She smiled when she saw the determined glint in the girl's eyes.

"Hai."

**A/N: Not much here.. I wanted to get more in, but I decided to update SOMETHING first so.. yea here it is.. don't be too disappointed.. I'm working on the next update.**


	23. Finally Out of the Darkness

**Before we start.. some questions/comments I'd like to address.. **

**Alex** – Yea. I kind of noticed that too. And I'm trying to fit more romance in there (honestly I am ) but… just bear w/ me.. I need the action plotline to actually play out too

**Amanda **– Thanks for the LONG review… Haven't gotten one of those in a while.. Your excitement is the best gift for an author. thanks for the advice too.

**moonfan2012 **– wow.. good catch… I didn't even realize that. The thing is, I started this story when I was 12 or so.. and back then.. all I knew was the dub version of Sailor Moon.. when I started watching the subbed later seasons of the series, I started getting used to the Japanese names. The reason Neptune and Uranus have their Japanese names in this is because I didn't even think of adding them to the story until a few years after watching the sub version. In fact, I was thinking of just changing the names halfway through this story (from English dub to Japanese) .. but I guess that would be too weird.. anyway, enough rambling. Thanks for the catch once again.. I've gone and changed it.

**Goodbye, My Love – Chapter 21**

"WORLD SHAKING!"

"BURNING MANDALA!"

"VENUS CRESCENT BEAM!"

A cloud of debris filled the air. The Senshi waited with bated breaths. Slowly the haze cleared enough for them to see a hole had clearly been formed in the center of the obstacle separating them from Sailor Uranus.

"Yes!" Sailor Moon leaped for joy. Now, the only problem would be getting Darien to wake up. Looking down at the still unconscious man, she felt her joy diminish a little.

"Venus!" The princess looked up to see the Senshi of Love stop in her tracks and turn around to the fiery miko in question. Mars shook her head, muttering under her breath at how careless the blonde was.

"Just in case," the raven-haired girl mumbled as she picked up a rock off the floor and tossed it through the opening. It flew through without problem and landed safely on the other side, a small distance from Uranus. Satisfied, Mars walked past Venus who still stood with a confused look. Holding onto a small amount of suspicion, the miko sucked in a breath and walked through the opening. Nothing happened. She let out her breath in relief.

"Alright." She turned back around to her friends. "Let's get going." She glanced at Max, who was still holding his arm, his face grimacing every few seconds, then at Darien. "Uranus, can you carry him?" Mars directed over her shoulder. Behind her, Uranus nodded and walked the short distance towards the miko and her friends.

* * *

"This way." The Senshi of Wind shifted the weight on her back as she continued to lead the way down the dark pathway.

"Are you sure?" Sailor Moon asked as she looked worriedly at Darien. _He really needs help… fast…_ The amount of blood that had drenched the man's shirt bothered her greatly. The stab wound wasn't big, but it was deep. The amount of blood could lend testimony to that. The facts terrified her. She couldn't lose him again. Not when she had just started to trust him again. If anything happened to him, she didn't think she would be able to recover. It would be too big a blow to her mental state. Sailor Moon shook her head, trying to clear it of these dark thoughts.

"Yea. I'm sure." Uranus responded after some thought. _If we continue down this way, we should get back to the disappearing door. At least.. I hope so.._

* * *

The group had finally reached the door. The problem was, it wouldn't open. _Great! Another door that doesn't open._ Uranus let out a frustrated groan. Glancing around her, she could tell that Mars and Venus were just as frustrated, not to mention Max who could do nothing more than stand and watch. Uranus sighed as she saw the flickers of pain cross the Love Senshi's face. The girl wasn't fairing well at all. The taller blonde could tell she was trying her hardest just to stand upright with her injured leg. Sailor Mars, Sailor Moon and herself were the only people who were uninjured at the minute. Uranus glanced at the princess who was sitting on the floor behind them. _Not like.. she's much help.. The only thing on her mind right now is her prince…_

"I don't like this Darien," Sailor Moon whispered to the man she held in her arms. She had long since sat down on the floor, ignoring the biting chill of the rough surface. Uranus, with unexpected understanding, had lowered the man into her arms, his back to her front. Then, the three scouts had tried everything they could think off to get the door to open, but it just refused to budge. Sailor Moon tightened her embrace.

She could feel the wetness from his soaked shirt as she forced herself not to cry. His blood was seeping onto her hands, its warmth long since gone leaving only icy coldness, making her fingers feel numb. She felt so helpless. There was nothing she could do. Not that it mattered if they couldn't get out of here any way. They were probably all good as dead if they couldn't escape from the place. The princess was surprised they hadn't already been executed.

Sailor Moon sighed again as she looked down at the black-haired man in her embrace. _There is so much I have to say to you.. So much that has yet been resolved.. you can't leave me now.. I-I love you.._ The blonde closed her eyes as tears threatened to fall again.

"Serena?" The princess jerked up suddenly from the voice, unintentionally disturbing Darien's injury. The prince groaned in response. Sailor Moon stared, shocked as the man slowly opened his pain-filled eyes. She didn't know if she should laugh or cry, smile or frown. In the end, the choice was made for her as her eyes filled with more tears.

Smiling despite the pain, Darien reached up and wiped away the tears spilling onto his love's cheeks. They looked long and hard at each other, both trying to convey the emotions wrecking havoc in their systems.

Unconsciously, they had started to lean their faces closer to the other. There wasn't more than three inches separating them now. Bracing herself, Serena closed the remaining distance. Darien nearly gasped from the exquisite feeling of Serena's lips on his. It was undoubtedly the sweetest nectar on earth and he realized with stark clarity just how much he had missed it.

The kiss was short, but both pulled away breathing heavily. Serena could still feel her heart racing as she continued to stare into darkened blue orbs. A deep blush graced her cheeks. It had been so long since she had kissed him.

* * *

Lita watched as the sun set. She got up from the chair she had previously occupied, frustration evident on her features. She couldn't take it anymore. The wait had become unbearable. While Lita had determined to leave right around noon, Michiru had sat her down and somehow coaxed her into waiting till night. And so, as the hours passed, she only felt herself getting increasing anxious.

"It's time." Lita regarded the other woman. Michiru glanced up at the brunette. She then turned to look out the window. The sun was just setting. _I thought I said night?_ Turning her attention back to the younger woman, Michiru shook her head in defeat. Impatience was written all over Lita's face. The older woman knew she wouldn't be able to hold the brunette back.

It wasn't as if she wasn't worried out of her mind at the minute either. She was worried, distressed even. However despite the unease, she was still trying to think with a clear mind. Haruka had taught her to never cloud her judgment, to never let her emotions get in the way, not even when the blonde was involved. In fact, especially not when the blonde was involved.

Her resolve had been strong until she had taken one look at Lita. One look, and her anxiety could no longer be kept in check. One look and she was standing up as well. Michiru nodded at the brunette. Wasting no time, Lita grabbed her communicator and strode to the door, Michiru hot on her heels.

* * *

Max squeezed his eyes shut, hoping it would block out some of the pain. He was dismayed to find the effort useless. In fact, the action only seemed to cause his arm to throb more painfully.

_Arg.. Stop being such a baby! Look around you! This is nothing compared to the pain Darien is going through. _Max mentally berated himself as he barely made out Serena and Darien's figures in the darkness.

The man sighed and shook his head. He was so useless. There was nothing he could do to help. _Nothing._ Gritting his teeth, he glanced at Sailor Venus. She appeared ready to collapse at any minute and yet she held herself steady as she aided Mars and Uranus in trying to blast the door open with magic.

_She's so strong. How could I ever measure up to her? _He shook his head furiously, cursing his weakness. He hated being so weak. While he was usually in no way a wimp, the current circumstances were making him feel much like one. He could no longer conjure up that feeling of confidence in his ability to defend himself, because he _couldn't_. Not against these inhuman things that he had been made aware of not a fortnight ago.

Under different circumstances, he would be more than capable of protecting his friends. All those years of Karate weren't for nothing after all. However, this was not under different circumstances. He had found himself ensnared in a world that he didn't know existed. Sure he had heard of the stories before. All the stories that had traveled the globe, all the stories with claims of supernatural activity in Japan. He definitely knew of them. He just never knew he would be faced with its reality.

"Venus!" The shout shook him out of his thoughts and he watched in panic as Sailor Venus crumbled to the ground. It took a minute before he realized he was already dashing towards her, his pain all but forgotten.

"Mina!" He got there just as she was about to hit the ground. The blonde fell violently into his arms, the sheer force of the impact knocking them both to the ground, her on top of him. Max didn't let go. The feeling of the petite blonde in his arms was too enjoyable. He didn't want to let the feeling go.

Sailor Venus didn't know what to do. On the one hand, she was ecstatic to be in the arms of the man that she had somehow grown fond despite the few number of days she had known him. While she wasn't certain of what it was that she felt for him, she was confident that it was more than friendship she felt for the man. After all, friends wouldn't have acted like she had when he had gotten hurt earlier. The memory of that incident returned and she found herself grinning at the dumbstruck expression that had covered Max's face as she had turned to walk away. Definitely something deeper than friendship. But what?

"Mina?" The blonde raised her head slightly, blushing hotly when she found herself face to face with Max. Concern was etched across his features. This trivial finding paled in comparison to the next little detail Venus noticed and the blonde suddenly felt short of breath. They were close enough for her to feel his breath on her face. If she only leaned in a little closer...

"Mina! Are you alright?" Venus jolted at Mars' worried voice, quickly pushing away from Max so that she now sat besides him and not on him. She stared at the ground, willing her face to return to its normal color.

"I'm fine!" she stammered, looking up at Mars and Uranus, both having rushed towards her when they had seen her falter. Anywhere but at _**him**_.

Max was confused. _Is it just me or does it seem like she's avoiding me?_ He eyed the back of the blonde's head quizzically. Before he could voice his misgivings, the blonde was already struggling to stand up. With both hands flat on the ground beside her, she was attempting to push herself back up. She slowly stood up on shaky legs and would have fallen if it weren't for the Mars and Uranus coming to her rescue.

"You shouldn't force yourself. Rest a while," Uranus advised. Venus plastered on a smile in an attempt to hide the pain and weariness she really felt. She couldn't just sit and do nothing. She wasn't called the leader of the Senshi for nothing after all.

"No, really. I'm fine. I just felt a little tired earlier. Sorry to worry you."

"Mina.. I think you should sit for a while." Venus snapped her head towards the Fire Senshi, ready to rebuke her friend's suggestion. She was about to retort when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She froze. There could be only one person that hand belonged to.

"Mina. Just. Sit." Venus turned around slowly. She was slightly annoyed that _**he **_was ordering her around. Who did he think he was? However, at the sight of him, she suddenly felt weak. His eyes were stormy, clouded with many emotions, all fighting for dominance. She thought she had caught something in his eyes just then and then it had disappeared. It was something she couldn't quite decipher. Was it concern? Anger? Love? Dare she hope that it was the latter? Nonetheless, it had left her speechless.

"You know your right leg can't take anymore." The adamant tone of voice he used left no argument. Knowing she had lost, Mina nodded.

* * *

"So.. What should we do now?" Uranus spared a glance towards the raven-haired woman next to her before returning her attention to the seemingly invincible door. "We can't just sit here forever…" She heard the Mars sigh next to her.

"For once.. I have no idea..," the fiery miko replied. She turned her head slightly to the left, noting that they were now all just sitting against the wall in a cramped passageway. This was hopeless. How would they ever get out of this place?

"Uranus.. didn't you say you saw a youma enter through this door?" Sailor Uranus nodded. "Why hasn't another come through here again… And is it even possible for them to not have come to investigate? We were making a hell lot of noise with our attacks."

"Who knows?" Uranus shrugged. She rested the back of her head on the wall, too tired to even wonder about Mars' words.

"Do you think Neptune and Jupiter will come for us?" While they could barely see her, they could both distinguish that the voice belonged to Sailor Moon. Sailor Mars smiled. Just like their princess to always be such an optimist.

"I'm sure they will Serena.." They heard Darien's weak reply before either of them could rush to reassure the princess. They both smiled. And it was just like their prince to try to keep her spirits up.

"So.. Serena.. when's the wedding?" Sailor Venus teased. They all chuckled weakly as they each pictured the blush the princess now wore on her face. And as usual, Darien would be grinning, undoubtedly amused.

"W-What are you talking about Mina?!" It only made them laugh harder, glad that they could take their mind of their current predicament, if only for a few minutes.

Abruptly the laughter stopped. They could hear fighting on the other side of the door. It was unmistakable. They could hear Jupiter and Neptune shouting out the names of their attacks. Hope and anxiety revived, they all sprang into motion.

"Serena." Sailor Mars said before the blonde could attempt to stand up. "Just stay put." Sailor Moon was about to protest when she felt Darien squeeze her hand.

"Just do as she says for once." The princess huffed, but decided to obey the order.

"Alright.. since this door is supposed to be invisible.. We better make some noise," Sailor Uranus stated, one hand already on the door. Sounds of agreement. Sailor Uranus grinned. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

"Did you hear that?" Sailor Neptune whispered to the brunette standing back to back with her. She didn't dare look at the other woman as that would require her to take her eyes off of the youma that surrounded them in a circle.

"Yea." Jupiter looked at the she faced warily. There were too many of them. They needed help and they needed it fast.

"I think it's the others." Neptune heard an affirmative grunt coming from the brunette. "It's coming from your direction." Another affirmative from the brunette. "Alright, here's the plan. I'll distract them while you make a run for it." She felt the brunette tense and hurriedly stopped her before Jupiter could argue. "Don't. We won't get out of this alive if we can't find the others. It's our only chance."

Jupiter growled. She could see the logic behind the other woman's words clearly. It was obviously the reasonable thing to do. But could she just let Neptune make that sacrifice?

"On a count of 3. Please just do as I say Jupiter." The Senshi of Thunder sighed. She couldn't disobey that pleading tone. She gave a reluctant yes. Neptune nodded, satisfied.

"One.." Neptune took a deep breath.

"Two.." She braced herself and got ready to attack.

"Three!" The turquoise-haired woman turned in Sailor Jupiter's direction, dismissing the millions of signals her body was sending her to turn back around, to not let her opponents out of her sight.

"DEEP SUBMERGE!" The attack had cleared a path in the throng of youma. "GO!" Neptune pushed the brunette forward and after a second's hesitation and one last look over her shoulder, Jupiter was dashing away from her.

* * *

The door opened, granting some much needed light to the occupants on the other side. Despite the searing sensation in their eyes the light caused, the welcomed it whole-heartedly. It seemed like eons since they had last seen any light. It truly was the gift of the gods. And as their visions adjusted they found an even greater gift.

"Are you guys okay?" Sailor Jupiter stood in the center of the doorway, the light casting an angelic glow about her. Her response came in the form of six relieved smiles. However, she knew it was no time to celebrate. They still had to go free Neptune of her burden. It would be a long time before this was over.

**A/N:**

Yea.. slightly longer chapter.. took quite some time to write.. DAMN THIS WRITER'S BLOCK..

Anyhow.. please review and I will try to update soon despite the writer's block \


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